


Trembled Under His Gaze

by SophieTrancy



Category: Fast & Furious (Movies), Hobbs & Shaw (2019)
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Alpha Luke, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Beard Kink, Bickering, Bottom Deckard, Cubs, Denial of Feelings, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Exes, Family, Father-Daughter Relationship, Jealousy, Knotting, M/M, Male Pregnancy, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Non-Graphic Violence, Omega Deckard, Past Relationship(s), Porn with Feelings, Protective Siblings, Saving the World, Scenting, Serious Injuries, Sharing Body Heat, Sharing a Bed, Siblings, Top Luke
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-07
Updated: 2020-12-26
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:47:05
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 46,907
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26876155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SophieTrancy/pseuds/SophieTrancy
Summary: Deckard had to admit things weren't looking up.A sharp pain twisted inside his gut. One he knew well.Of course, in comes Luke Hobbs. The Alpha he had been lying to for months.Or, the one where Deckard goes into heat during a mission and Luke offers to help him through it. Feelings ensue.
Relationships: Luke Hobbs/Deckard Shaw
Comments: 89
Kudos: 284





	1. Breathe Through the Pain

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, everybody! This is my first time adding to this fandom, even though I've been a fan from the start. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I'm loving writing it. Don't know how many chapters there will be, I'll add them as I write them.
> 
> Thanks for reading!

Deckard had to admit things weren’t looking up. There was a sharp pain in between his shoulder blades and he could feel dried blood on his back, glueing his shirt to his skin. His vest had been removed, along with all his knives and guns. Needless to say, Deckard felt exposed without them. The room he was in was large and dark and it took him a few moments to be able to see something. Despite the chill in the air, his body burned, almost from the inside out.

Apart from assessing the extent of the damage, his next thought was of Hobbs. Before the explosion and the screaming, the man had been standing back to back with him. They had barely gotten the chip which they had traveled all the way to Russia for when they found themselves surrounded by the minions they had been trying to avoid. Deckard lost consciousness not two minutes later.

Before relief could flood through him at the sight of Hobbs in front of him, a sharp pain twisted inside his gut. Oh, it was one he knew well. And it had nothing to do with whatever torture technics had been used on him up until that moment. Though Deckard was sure they hadn’t helped his case. Hobbs was shackled much like himself. His head bobbed to one side, still knocked out cold. Damn it. That wasn’t a good sign. Nor was the dry blood on the side of his head.

Deckard bit back the wave of nausea that rushed through him. This was _not_ the time! He bit his lip, trying to breathe through the pain. Instead, Deckard focused on the room around them. There was no way to tell how long they’d been there. Deckard didn’t even know if he had regained consciousness at one point or another. He was hungry, hurt and cold. A terrible combination for someone on the brink of a heat.

Because of one thing Deckard was sure: his heat was coming. Which, if his calculations were correct, and they _always_ were, they had to have been there for over twenty-four hours. Give or take a few of those. He had planned on being back home by the time his heat struck. Every once in a while, Deckard allowed his body to go through that natural process and he had even bothered to stock up on food and water this time around. The thought of his bed made him want to growl in frustration.

Especially because he knew his best bet of making it out of, not only that room, but that _bloody_ country, was unconscious across from him. They _had_ to make it out of there. Not only for the mission, but for his own sake. Deckard couldn’t bring himself to imagine what would happen if his heat were to strike while they were still stuck, shackled and so fucking vulnerable. Every self-preservation instinct Deckard had was telling him to get the fuck out. But there were quite a few obstacles to that plan and he needed his own one-man army to make it work.

Well, look at that. Speak of the devil and he shall appear. 

Luke groaned, pulling at his restraints. His head was pounding, a clear sign of the beating he had most likely endured. But through the haze of pain, there was only thing his brain focused on. Shaw. Or, more accurately, the distress Luke smelled coming from him. A voice inside his head told him to get the fuck up, because there was danger around. He just had to smell Shaw to know. By the time he remembered how to open his eyes, the Brit was already talking.

“Hey, wake up!” Deckard hissed. Somewhere, in the rational part of his brain, he told himself he had no right to demand anything from the man. Nothing about their partnership demanded that Hobbs save his ass. And yet the man had never failed him. Luke Hobbs. The most _unlikely_ partner Deckard had ever been forced to work with. The only one that worked. The Alpha he had been lying to for months now “Wake up, Hulk. We have a bit of a situation here”

“Yeah” Luke blinked his eyes open, finding Shaw not six feet away from him. His arms were shackled above his head, in what couldn’t be a comfortable position. Hobbs pulled at the chains, looking around the room to try and map their surroundings. There were a few boxes piled up in one corner, but apart from that, they were the only decorative pieces in the large warehouse-like construction. His eyes managed to take Shaw in, scoffing at the fear and distress coming off of him in waves. Luke knew they’d gotten out of worse situations in the past. But nothing in the world had ever prepared him for the words he heard next “No shit, Sherlock”

“I’m not talking about the chains and the bad guys, _dickhead_ ” If Shaw hadn’t seemed so stressed and, apparently on the brink of losing his mind, Luke would have laughed. That was a new one for him “I’m _talking_ about the fact that we’ve been stuck down here for almost an entire day, which means I didn’t take my suppressants today and my heat is coming. We’ve got an hour, tops”

The last thing Deckard had expected to do during this mission was reveal his biggest secret to his partner. Though they needed to be well acquainted with each other in order to get the job done, _this_ particular piece of information had always seemed unnecessary to be shared. So Deckard was an Omega. They had bigger fish to fry.

But all Luke did, all he could find in himself to do, was stare at him.

Heat.

Only Omegas had heats.

While his mind raced, the craziness of those words never truly sank in. Because they weren’t. Even worse, they made perfect sense. Everything seemed to slide into focus as soon as Luke heard them. He had always felt like something was missing with Shaw. His scent had always lacked, somehow. It was almost... sterile. Luke had never bothered trying to explain these things, however. Nothing about Shaw, his behavior or set of abilities had ever made Luke think of him as anything less than the Alpha he seemed to be. 

The heat suppressants made sense. They would certainly explain the lack of a proper scent. But still, _Omega_ wasn’t exactly the word Luke would ever use to describe Deckard Shaw. The man wouldn’t fit even the loosest of stereotypes. But the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. The way he had cared for baby Brian, why he had come out of hiding for Owen. 

“Don’t go all silent on me now, big guy” Deckard’s head snapped to better capture a sound coming from outside the room. It was hard to make out if what he heard were footsteps or words, and that only added to his distress. His fear spiked considerably, causing Luke’s nostrils to flare. If anything, the instinct to protect the man made him think more clearly. Probably because there were no suppressants in the way this time.

“You’re an Omega” Luke felt ridiculously stupid for saying those words aloud, but he couldn’t stop himself. He had learned the hard way never to assume things when it came to Shaw and he wasn’t about to start now, no matter his second gender. Being an Omega didn’t change the things he knew about him. Deckard Shaw could very well kill him in point three seconds flat, shackled and unarmed and anyone who thought otherwise was straight up insane.

“Yes, I am. Now that we have stated the obvious, dingus” Deckard couldn’t help but roll his eyes. He had never expected the man to be so slow. Deckard was well aware there were no Omegas in the military and could only imagine what the guy’s righteous brain was thinking of, but this was not the time “We need to come up with a plan to get out of here. If my heat strikes…” Shaw didn’t have to finish that sentence in order for Luke to get the idea.

“Okay, okay. I _get_ it. Let me think, will you?” Luke took a deep breath, using the grip of the chains to hoist himself up. Before anything else, he made himself aware of his injuries, making sure every limb worked before risking worsening any situation “Are you hurt?” He asked, turning around as much as the shackles allowed in order to take the room in. The action only confirmed his suspicions: there was nothing there they could use. No windows, no other doors. Only one way in and one way out. Luke didn’t think they could escape without a fight.

“There’s a cut on my back that won’t close because of these _bloody_ shackles” Shaw shook them for good measure, looking like he wanted to curse the thing some more “You?”

“A couple of bruises, but that’s it. Whatever happened to my face already healed. Okay, hear me out” Deckard wanted to snap that there wasn’t much of an option in his case, but he only took a deep breath instead. He didn’t think Hobbs had it in him to leave him for dead, but it would be better not to push his luck “There’s only one door in and out. I say we do what we do best: stall and convince them to take us out of this room. After that, we figure out a way to uncuff ourselves and then we fight. Sound good?”

Any other day and Deckard would have told him to shove that plan right up where the sun didn’t shine. But he simply nodded instead. They didn’t have much time. The white hot pain twisted inside his stomach as a reminder of the immediate threat. Deckard could already feel his metabolism responding to his own pheromones and knew only a good old-fashioned shot of adrenaline would keep the heat at bay. For the time being.

“Good is the last thing any of that sounds, She-Hulk” A loud bang right outside the door interrupted the string of insults that threatened to escape his mouth. They exchanged a look, knowing they didn’t have time to devise another plan of action. They would have to improvise their way out of there “But I’ll be sure to do some smashing of my own if I have to”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Find me on social media:
> 
> Twitter: @SofiaVolkerling // Tumblr: faded-green-of-bruises
> 
> XoXo


	2. Online Credit Cards and Privacy Clauses

Deckard was thankful for small mercies. The shackles dropped to his feet with a loud bang and he sighed at the movement of his shoulders he had just regained. He could already tell he’d be stiff for a week. But they weren’t in the clear just yet. Hobbs had barely been able to get a hold of the keys before men had burst into the room, guns blazing.

The two donkeys who had come to check on them had fallen for their trick like ducks in a pond. Luke had gotten unshackled first, but whoever was responsible for supervising their security guards had decided to show up before they could free Shaw too. Luke had simply pulled him along by the chains, only stopping once they were out of sight. They ducked behind what seemed to be a control panel and Hobbs whispered for him to turn around.

“What?” Deckard’s head snapped back to look at him, momentarily stopping in his search for a way out or other threats. He was ready to vomit, the nausea was so intense. He was sure that if he had eaten, he would have thrown up by now. And that wouldn’t have been a pretty sight “Why?”

“I want to look at the cut on your back” Luke whispered, considering the two guards they heard just outside the door to the control room they had taken shelter in. They both knew it was just a matter of time before the news of their escape spread like wildfire. And the way Shaw was panting wasn’t a good sign. Luke had seen him take down dozens of men without even breaking a sweat. He looked green, to say the least. And it had nothing to do with a lack of sunlight “Now be a good girl and turn around”

Shaw mumbled something Luke preferred not to identify just yet and did as he was told. Luke rolled the shirt up, careful not to rip the part that had been attached to the skin for some time now. His pale skin was stained red, but Luke wasn’t worried about the cut. He was more concerned with the two ribs he was sure Shaw had broken and apparently wasn’t feeling yet. Most likely a result of the torture and the pheromones kicking in. He’d feel them, all in good time. 

“Good news, it’s not bad” Luke thought it best if they didn’t talk about fractures quite yet. They’d have plenty of time for that once they weren’t being hunted by Russian criminals in the middle of God knows where. He knew for a fact Shaw hated hospitals, so he foresaw himself bandaging the man in the near future “Won’t even need stitches. How long do we have?”

Deckard knew exactly what the real meaning behind those words was. But, given how Hobbs’ eyes went wide not a second later, Deckard was willing to bet he had already answered that question. The pain twisting inside him only grew stronger, almost by the second. Considering he had suppressed his last three heats, it was coming to him as no surprise. Somehow Hobbs seemed to be unaffected so far, which, again, small mercies.

“Not a lot. Got it” Luke looked around, trying to find whatever they could use as a weapon until they found their things. There was a big chance he would never see his beloved revolver again, considering how huge the facility was and how little time they had. But his number one priority was to get Shaw out of there. Everything else came second after that “Can you fight?”

“Course I can fight. Some adrenaline would work wonders right about now” Great. Luke could work with that. Swiftly, they took out the two guards circling the landing around the control room, thankful for the Bizons they got their hands on. They loaded up on as much ammo as they could carry and made their way out of the building. The place was a maze of hallways and doors that led to dead ends, so they made slow progress. 

It wasn’t until they left the main building that all hell broke loose. Luke barely had time to move Shaw out of the way before two bullets hit right where his head had been seconds before. Luke was thankful that Shaw had been right. The adrenaline in his system had managed to tune down the sweetness of his scent. It was still there, of course. But it was more managable. It had been sharp not ten minutes before and would have given their location away instantly. But the adrenaline had overpowered it. 

Had Luke been a lesser Alpha and man, he would have dropped to his knees and begged Shaw to be the one he spent his heat with. But, coming from a family of Alphas and having been raised by a powerful woman who demanded her sons respect Omegas, he did nothing but pull Shaw along. He had no idea where they were off to, but had to hope for the best.

And it paid off. Luke had no idea how long Shaw could fight his on-coming heat, but trusted the man to hold his own and cover for him while he hot wired the USV that would be their getaway car. If only Luke could get inside. He had been trying to keep a low profile, but to hell with it. He used his elbow to break the window and opened the door, thankful there were no alarms. With a quick nod from Shaw, whose eyes never left the door they had just crossed, Luke set to work. For once, he was thankful he knew the necessary steps to steal a car.

But, apparently, they didn’t account for the cameras keeping track of their whereabouts. As soon as the engine roared to life, Luke caught sight of the two men Shaw put down before they even had the chance to open fire on them. Shaw walked around the front of the car, still aiming for the door and made his way to the passenger door, grunting about Hobbs’ driving skills. That it was testament enough of the faith he was putting on the man.

Deckard remained silent through most of the car ride. His gun was aimed out the window, eyes wide open and alert in case they were being followed. The adrenaline made him see miles behind them and, after several minutes, he declared that they weren’t. Hobbs had put a significant distance between them and the building, which had been left to burn in their wake, before Deckard felt it was safe to turn back inside and sighed against the leather seat.

The way Hobbs gripped the steering wheel did not go unnoticed by him, though. Deckard felt the sudden need to apologize. All things considered, they had been through so much together and the last thing Deckard wanted was to put Hobbs through some like _this_. He couldn’t help but be surprised at the level of control the man was exercising. Deckard had stirred quite a few fights in his day and he had to command Hobbs for keeping himself in check. Especially since they were stuck in such a small space.

“So, where to?” Hobbs’ voice brought him back to the present and Deckard saw that they were arriving at the nearest city. It probably wasn’t the smartest move to stay so close to the place they had been held at, but they didn’t have time or any other choices. Deckard’s heat was minutes away and something told him Hobbs was counting each one of them “How do you normally do this? Do you have everything you need?”

“Well, there’s no point in taking suppressants now. I wasn’t planning on spending this heat lost somewhere in Russia, but I suppose somewhere safe will do. I don’t need much else” Deckard felt the pang of homesickness grow inside his chest. His apartment wasn’t exactly home, no place had felt like that in a long time, but it was the closest thing to safety he had ever had. Being miles away from it didn’t help soothe him at all “As long as there’s a lock on the door, with food and water, I can wait this out just fine”

Luke knew being safe was probably far more important than food or water to an Omega in heat. They were at their most vulnerable and, once the heat truly started, they weren’t able to fend for themselves. That was where Alphas came in. They were the providers. But that didn’t mean there weren’t plenty of Omegas who chose to spend their heats by themselves. Which was why Luke suddenly knew exactly where they could go.

“Okay. Let’s get ourselves to a hotel, then” Luke spoke, keeping his eyes out for the largest hotels. The city they were in, apart from having a name Luke wouldn’t dare try to pronounce, was by no means the booming center of the Russian economy, but it certainly had what they were looking for. It wasn’t something a city could do without “A mating one. We get you a room where you can have all the food and protection you need. I’ll come up with an excuse for Nobody later”

Deckard would never admit it. He’d rather die than do it. But he was thankful for the hand Hobbs kept on the small of his back. Well, technically, the hand had been in between his shoulder blades, all very respectful. But every head had turned to stare at them once the lobby doors slid open, so Deckard had made sure the hand moved lower. People stared, if not for the fact that there was an Omega in heat, but maybe for the blood splattered on their clothes and faces, or the windows missing from the car they had stepped out of. 

An Alpha at the lobby, particularly, stood up. The businessman sniffed toward Deckard and his eyes changed, focusing solely on him. All in one quick second, Deckard grabbed Hobbs’ wrist and slid his hand further down, until it rested on the curve of his spine. One more inch and it would have been straight up _indecent_. That made Hobbs look away from the receptionist, which seemed infatuated with the man already and arch an eyebrow at him. Deckard softly gestured his head toward the man, who had decisively been making his way over. 

The adrenaline had long since worn off, leaving him in no shape to fight. Not that he wanted Hobbs to fight his battles for him. But Hobbs didn’t seem to mind being used like this. If anything, he seemed very keen on the idea of standing his ground against assholes who thought they stood a chance. Deckard would allow it, just this once. Hobbs’ top lip curled in a silent growl, a warning for the man to back the fuck off. 

Deckard watched, amused, at the poor excuse of an Alpha stopping dead in his tracks. Hobbs didn’t even have to move away from the reception desk in order for the man to know his approach was not welcome. The man sheepishly went back to his suitcase and took a seat once more. At least the man had it in him to recognize he’d been overpowered. 

They got two rooms, just like Luke had planned. One for Shaw, in the mating wing. The other was for Luke, in the regular quarters. Something in him told Luke he shouldn’t be that far from Shaw, just in case the man needed him, but he yelled at that voice that Shaw wasn’t the damsel in distress type. He could handle his own even on his worst day. However, Luke had planned on escorting Shaw to the very door of his room, then making a run for it. Shaw’s scent was back to its full power, so strong Luke was having a hard time staying in control.

At that rate, he didn’t think he could even be in the elevator with him. They didn’t have any belongings, since they hadn’t been able to look for their stuff back at the facility and Luke was immensely thankful for online credit cards and privacy clauses in mating hotels. He let Shaw take the lead and followed the man until they were standing face to face, waiting for the elevator. Hobbs was but a step too close, just to make sure no other Alpha got any ideas.

“I was thinking we should tell Nobody my rut was triggered during the mission. He won’t fight me if I say that the room was for me” There were many flaws to that plan, but Deckard was too tired to even think of the first few. With the kind of power Nobody had, he barely had to poke around before he found out the truth. But, for once, he’d let Hobbs deal with it “That way your gender remains a secret. And you know I won’t tell anyone”

Deckard wanted to thank him but the words never made it past his lips. He wasn’t used to this kind of kindness from people. And, during a heat, he tended to become naturally suspicious of everything and everyone around him. So he was shocked to find himself willing to place his trust on Hobbs. Whatever was left of his rational thought reasoned that this was nothing in comparison to all the shit they had already gone through. If he couldn’t trust Hobbs, there wasn’t a single living creature on the planet worthy of it.

“But I don’t think I can ride the elevator with you” Deckard couldn’t help but arch an eyebrow at the words. Hobbs wouldn’t meet his eyes for a long while and the elevator dinged before the man found the courage to look up and finish his thought. He seemed… embarrassed. Great, _now_ he got embarrassed “I want you to be safe, but I don’t trust myself around you right about now. I’m sorry, I…”

“ _You_ 're sorry? If anyone here needs to apologize, that one is me” Truth be told, Deckard was in no condition to have this discussion. Hobbs’ scent was bad enough. He didn’t need the man to be any nicer to him on top of it all “You’ve been nothing but nice to me since I dropped this bomb on you. And if you ever tell a _soul_ I just called you nice, I will deny it until I drop dead”

The smile now adorning Hobbs’ features was something Deckard felt like he could face. Banter. They did that regularly. It was known ground. Common territory they traded every day they were together. Though Deckard didn’t have it in him to come up with any funny insults at that moment, he could still bicker his way out of that awkward mess. And he was happy to find Hobbs was right there with him.

“And there he is” Hobbs planted his hands on either side of the door, eyeing the hotel clerk who had been under the impression he’d be taking the elevator along with Deckard. Any other day and Deckard might have even felt compelled to shrug an apology at the poor Beta, but not this time. He’d take all the safety Hobbs could provide him, thank you very much “I was beginning to worry we’d lost you”

“Oh, heat or no heat, I can still kick your Samoan arse” Though Deckard figured that had to be the worst lie he had ever told, he stood by it. He pressed the button on the panel, but held the door open with his foot. He would never give Hobbs the satisfaction of having the final word “Wanna try me?”

“I’ll take your word for it, princess. Just this once” Hobbs moved away from the door, the smile on his face a victorious one and Deckard suspected he wasn’t even breathing at that point. He looked positively ready to take the stairs, no matter the crazy amount of stories the hotel had. Deckard decided then it was time to go “Call if you need anything”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Find me on social media:
> 
> Twitter: @SofiaVolkerling // Tumblr: faded-green-of-bruises
> 
> XoXo


	3. Exploded Out of Windows

When Luke told Shaw to call if he needed anything, he had never expected the call to arrive a little over half an hour later. Luke hadn’t even found it in himself to shower yet when he heard the piercing ring of the phone he had left on his bedside table. They had been lucky to find those among the belongings of the guards they had taken down. Untraceable, as far as Luke could tell. He wouldn’t trust the hotel phones if someone paid him to. The room was pretty nice, no matter the fact all he needed at that point was the bed. The television was an added bonus, though he doubted he’d find a channel he’d understand. 

“Hobbs,” He answered, half expecting Shaw to be a mumbling mess on the other end of the call. But not even _that_ came through. Instead, all he heard was growling. And not the Omega kind either. Something inside him came alive, out of the stupor of exhaustion as he felt his hackles rise in alert. He would have gotten whiplash, hadn’t he been far more concerned with the lack of response on Shaw’s side “Shaw? What’s going on?”

When no reply came, Luke felt his senses growing sharper. Every instinct he had told him something was seriously wrong and that he should be out the door that very instant. But he didn’t listen. He stayed rooted on the ground, listening for any indication that he was indeed needed. Shaw wouldn’t have called if it weren’t serious, but Luke couldn’t risk being around the man during his heat for anything less than life-threatening.

Deckard himself couldn’t explain what was going on. He had barely been able to get to his feet, stumbling over to the cellphone Hobbs had handed him before he collapsed onto the floor. Everything else kept spinning and he didn’t trust himself to stand. He was also fairly certain the bolts on the door were seconds away from flying off, so that had to be classified as ‘anything’. Deckard recognized the scent of the Alpha from the lobby. The fucking bastard had waited until he was alone, but hadn’t been anywhere near his right mind to remember there was a magnetic lock on every door on that side of the hotel.

However, when Hobbs answered, not a second later, Deckard couldn’t bring himself to say he needed help. It just wasn’t in his nature to admit defeat and let the big bad Alpha come and take charge of things. But his legs weren’t to be trusted, neither were his reflexes. Hell, if the Alpha broke through the door, he might even let the man have his way. Every instinct he had would tell him this Alpha had proven himself strong enough and he’d gladly let himself be taken by him. And that was the last thing Deckard needed. To be the little bitch who couldn’t resist even a total stranger.

A loud curse coming from the other side of the phone was one of the few things Deckard could rationalize at that moment. Everything else seemed to be blurring together and the rug under his bare knees could barely get enough of his attention for him to realize how uncomfortable it actually was. Deckard heard the characteristic sound of the call disconnecting, but couldn’t find it in him to end it on his side. Hours seemed to pass, with nothing more than growling and the sound of shaking bolts to keep him company before he heard noises outside his door. Well, _different_ kinds of noises.

Hobbs’ voice cut through the haze of pain that had settled over his brain, sharp and his tone clear as he screamed at the Alpha to get lost. There were far more insults and curse words involved, but Deckard chose to hold onto what mattered. Somehow Hobbs was still in his right mind and Deckard was happy to find at least _one_ of them was. By the time Deckard found the strength to get up from his deplorable place on the floor, a hotel clerk had come to break the fight. Where the fucker had been all that time, Deckard preferred not knowing. Though breaking a fight between Alphas was a stupid concept, given this was Hobbs. 

And Deckard knew, okay? He fucking _knew_ he shouldn’t open the door. Hobbs had told him he was having trouble being around him and then had gone and been bloody _decent_ and stepped away. Deckard couldn’t think of a _single_ Alpha who had _ever_ behaved like that towards him. Especially one that didn’t hate his guts. At least not any more than most people did. And, of course, being the _bloody_ knight in shining armour, he had come to his rescue. Again. Deckard could perfectly picture Hobbs standing there, with the other Alpha being dragged away after being slapped around in the hallway.

Luke turned around when he heard the door unlock. Part of him was relieved to know Shaw was safely tucked inside the room. The other was terrified he wouldn’t be able to remain sane if he saw the man at that point. Encountering the Alpha hadn’t done him any good. All his brain thought was that he had _competition_ and that was not acceptable. The asshole from the lobby had been almost salivating and, though Luke would never condone what the man was doing, he _understood_.

Which was why he told himself to stop breathing. It was the only way he would be able to hold on to his senses. He could imagine Shaw’s scent traveling down the hallway and encircling him, pulling him in and breaking through every wall he had ever built. There was something very sweet about the scent. Even more so than other Omegas Luke had ever been around. After presenting, his mother had sat him down and told him that the scent would be very enticing to him, but that it was not his place to comment on it or, heaven forbid, act on it. Not unless he had permission. All of those teachings were about to race down the hall at any given second and Luke felt like he was losing his marbles with want and the need to provide for Shaw. No other Omega he’d been around had ever made him feel like that before.

Something about Hobbs was making this heat so much stronger. It was the only explanation for Deckard to be acting this way. It _had_ to be Hobbs’ fault. Deckard was used to being by himself, chasing whatever relief his hand could provide and waiting it out. Deckard had only ever spent a handful of heats with Alphas and he had never felt truly in control until it was too late. The power emanating from the Alpha was usually suffocating, making sure he stayed soft and compliant until his heat was over. The memories were so blurry he could hardly remember their faces, let alone the sex.

But with Hobbs, everything came into hyper focus. Almost as if every molecule of dust was dancing right in front of his eyes. Sounds died away until all he could hear was the man’s voice. Somehow he knew Hobbs wasn’t like the other Alphas he had forced himself to be with just to make the pain go away. It had never been about the pleasure before, about the intimacy of such an encounter. It was always about being quick and clean and getting it over with. Maybe it could be different this time, if only Hobbs would stay.

Knowing Hobbs was out there, willing to care about him, made all of his instincts come rushing to the surface. But he wasn’t scared of them, for once. Instead, he opened the door having never felt more certain of what he wanted in his life. Hell, he was willing to beg if it came to that. He told himself that if Hobbs was decent enough of an Alpha to do all of what he already had, then he could help Deckard through his heat and not act like any more of an asshole once it was over. It seemed like a pretty airtight reasoning.

Shaw was just standing there. His clothes, which consisted of a t-shirt and his boxer briefs, were soaked through with sweat and there was a soft whine escaping his clenched jaw. His hands were fisted at his sides, desperately shaking. And Luke just stood there, as if he had never seen an Omega before in his life. Instead of following through with any of the options his decency provided him with, he remained right where he was, taking him in. 

Deckard Shaw was a handsome man, with enough muscle to make most Alphas envious and a smile only a handful of people in the world had seen and lived to tell the tale. Luke had always thought of him as attractive, from the very first time he had truly stopped to look at his face. Of course, in between being thrown through glass walls and exploded out of windows, he hadn’t had much time to take the man beating him half to death in. But back at the hospital, with Shaw’s file in hand, he had found himself staring at a very handsome individual. Before, obviously, moving on to his long list of international crimes and felonies. 

But this? This was a step Luke wasn’t sure if he was willing to take. Even if nothing happened, the awkwardness of the situation and the secret Luke was willing to keep would be enough for their relationship to never be the same. No matter the reasons he came up with for himself, nothing would ever excuse this kind of behavior from him. Not even if Shaw were a willing participant. The worst part was not thinking he could reason his way out of this one.

Luke knew these were just instincts. Old-fashioned fail-safe mechanisms to ensure the survival of their species. Attraction and love, romance and lust. He told himself that was all those feelings were. Just chemical reactions in his brain. That it was his own horniness and Shaw’s scent doing things to him. And yet he didn’t move away. He had had plenty of time, but his brain seemed to have forgotten how to make his feet move. 

Luke had no idea who he had been trying to kid, probably himself above all else, but it wasn’t working. He knew very well that if Shaw asked him, he’d stay. There would be no way out of it. He wanted to stay. Luke would gladly help him through this heat. He’d been there for other Omegas before. But Shaw was his work partner. And they were _damn_ good at their job too. They had learned to count on each other and their success rate spoke for itself.

But Shaw could barely stand. Luke knew that if he weren’t knotted, the pain Shaw was in would only increase exponentially in the next few hours. It would leave him paralyzed in bed, hostage to his every need going unfulfilled. Luke took a deep breath and turned around, if only to confirm his suspicions. Shaw was clearly already well into the second stage of his heat and Luke couldn’t imagine the pain he was in. An unattended rut could be a bitch, but he knew from personal experience it wasn’t all that painful. He was a well enough read man to know for a fact that Omegas suffered the most when left uncared for. 

Shaw’s eyes were dark with desire and his body was only up thanks to the threshold he was resting against. Luke didn’t trust his own voice just yet, especially given how he hadn’t breathed in almost two whole minutes. Who knew what kind of crap would come out of his mouth then? He was better off not saying anything.

The two of them just stood there, with Shaw in his underwear, looking every bit as sinful and angelic as only an assassin could. And maybe thanks to everything they had already faced, Luke felt like it was safe for him to assume Shaw wasn’t going to ask him to stay. He had learned Shaw to be a proud man and that was indication enough of everything he ever had to face as probably the only Omega in the military. That kind of restraint wasn’t characteristic of Omegas and Luke feared to think of the situations Shaw probably had already had to squeeze out of in order to be where he was today. Luke knew they would have to talk about this some other time, if only to try and maintain some level of normalcy between them. But for the time being, Luke would throw caution to the wind and allow himself not to worry about where it was going to land.

Rational was so overrated these days anyway.

“I could help, you know” Hobbs was too close. So damn close. And Deckard loved it. The warmth emanating from Hobbs’ body was apparently the only thing able to send away the chill his body had been under for the past hour. But it also sent all rational thought out the window along with it. Deckard blinked and missed his own hand reaching out to whatever part of Hobbs’ he could find, his palm open in a silent request for permission.

And something tight inside him seemed to unravel when Hobbs took the next step towards him. Hobbs touching his chest to Deckard’s palm was the permission he needed and yet Deckard couldn’t move. Deckard could be a demanding Omega, he knew that. Even though he was well into his forties and being unbonded ensured his heats were still very strong, Deckard never liked to make the first move. He liked to sit back and let himself be taken care of, if only for a few days. However, those desires had never been completely fulfilled. He _really_ hoped Hobbs would change that.

Deckard closed his eyes at the warm and solid flesh underneath his fingers. Even through his shirt, Hobbs emanated heat. The comfortable and fuzzy kind, that made you want to snuggle up and fall asleep next to. Deckard couldn’t help but inhale his scent, deeply. It was warm, like everything else about the man, apparently. Deckard had never smelled him without suppressants before and he doubted he had ever smelled anything that good in his entire life.

Unable to hold out any longer, Deckard simply nodded. And in a lightning quick movement, Hobbs’ hands reached for his ass. The large palms seemed to be the perfect size to cup the cheeks and Deckard groaned at how tightly Hobbs’ squeezed them. Hobbs hoisted him up into his arms with such ease, as if Deckard weighted nothing. At least those muscles were good for something. 

Their mouths met not a second later and Deckard felt himself slipping. All senses dulled as he let his body mold itself to Hobbs’ chest, basking in the warmth sipping through the fabric, wishing and yearning for the naked contact he knew was seconds away from being given to him. Hobbs let Deckard control that first kiss, doing nothing but take a step into the room and kick the door shut.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Find me on social media:
> 
> Twitter: @SofiaVolkerling // Tumblr: faded-green-of-bruises
> 
> XoXo


	4. One Meant to Bruise

The bed was clearly meant for fucking. It was the largest piece of furniture in the room, flanked by two bedside tables with lamps on top. Luke was willing to bet the drawers were stocked with everything necessary to get through a heat or a rut. Lube, condoms and toys. Luke feared Shaw was way beyond the point of talking and wouldn’t be able to answer some very important questions, but he had to try anyway.

“Shaw, look at me” Luke bit his lip to stop himself from growling when Shaw simply whined, hands desperately trying to pry Luke out of his shirt. Luke remained knelt on the mattress, with his legs keeping Shaw’s spread apart and letting the man peel the fabric from his body. He couldn’t help but smile at the way Shaw pulled him back down, moaning at the naked contact of their skins “Is anything off limits? I need to know how you want to do this”

“No biting” Shaw whispered, looking up at Luke through heavy eyelids. Okay. Luke could agree to that. Neither of them wanted a bond to be born from _this_ , so it was good to get that out of the way. Luke gladly followed where Shaw guided him, letting his tongue meet the skin of his throat when Shaw pulled his neck down. Clearly his neck was a place he liked being touched, which would only make the no biting harder. But Luke was a lot of things, but he was no quitter.

“Please don’t ask me to use a condom” Luke groaned against the skin, which felt feverish even to his touch. Still, Shaw didn’t seem to have enough warmth, and wrapped himself around Luke to keep him right where he was. Shaw nodded, but this was something Luke needed to hear. Before he allowed himself to truly let go and be the Alpha Shaw needed, this wasn’t something they could simply nod at “Come on, I need you to say it. No misunderstandings here”

“I’m fine with no condoms” Those were the last words Shaw needed to speak before Luke sighed, letting go. Hands soon met zippers and buckles and Luke stood from the bed fully naked, eyes roaming the body on display for him. Shaw touched himself, his nipples and stomach, in whatever way made him feel better and Luke took those pieces of information and stored them for later. He knew he needed to be inside Shaw in the next minute, or otherwise the pain and haze wouldn’t subside. And the Alpha in him would never let that happen.

The next time Luke knelt in between Shaw’s legs, the scent of his slick almost sent Luke into overdrive. His cock was hard and hanging heavy and full and pulsed as the smell of pure arousal and need reached his nostrils. Shaw’s tight little hole was blinking, the rim red from all the slick dripping out. That was where Shaw’s scent was strongest and Luke added the desire to eat him out to the ever growing list of things he planned on doing to the man under him.

Hobbs knotted Deckard nice and slow. That wasn’t remotely close to what Deckard had expected from an Alpha like him, but it was a nice surprise anyway. Deckard had never taken the first knot so slow. Usually things slowed down once both parties were exhausted, but the heat or rut still demanded the connection. Luke’s mouth never moved away from his jaw and neck, which allowed Deckard to lay back and enjoy the moment all the more. Hobbs demanded nothing from him but to be a willing recipient of his ministrations and Deckard was happy to comply.

Twice Hobbs made him cum. Before his knot was even anywhere near inflating. Deckard found himself slipping further into the haze around his brain, the pleasure a constant tide hitting him from all sides. Hobbs’ cock was thick and long and kept him so full Deckard could almost taste it on the back of his tongue. And it was amazing. Hobbs’ mouth nibbled along his collarbones, leaving open mouthed kisses on his pecs.

Hobbs mumbled sweet nothings into his ear, riding through the orgasms he ripped from Deckard. Every touch and kiss seemed heightened and Deckard felt overwhelmed. And just as his third orgasm was beginning to set deep inside his stomach, his eyes snapped open at the feeling of Hobbs’ knot swelling. He finally took the time to look at Hobbs, taking in the look of pure ecstasy on his face. There was a thin layer of sweat, but that didn’t stop Deckard from clawing at the man’s back, if only to make him growl that much louder.

Hobbs fucked into his stretched hole until the knot stopped swelling and there was no more space for movement. Deckard’s legs shook from the force of the orgasm thanks to the pressure provided against his prostate and his arms held on to him like a lifeline. Just like the size of his knot was proportionate to Hobbs’ size, the amount of cum went right along with it. The warmth of it was welcome, only adding to the mess they had already made out of the sheets.

And Deckard would be lying if he said he didn’t appreciate the reassuring weight and scent of the Alpha who had just knotted him right on top of his body. Hobbs had collapsed, panting as he held on to Deckard. He growled as he kept cumming, smaller and smaller amounts until he finally stopped. His knot was so sensitive, it was testament to how long it had been since he had last gotten laid.

Luke had no idea how long had passed since his knot had taken, but he groaned at the change in Shaw’s scent. The Omega went from smelling nothing more than perfectly satiated to distressed and the change was obviously not missed by the Alpha still knotted inside him. It was outrageous that his Omega felt like that. It certainly worked to bring Luke back to the present, to the Omega under him and the reality of their circumstances. 

The fear was reflected more in Shaw’s eyes than his scent. Probably because the room smelled like nothing more than the sex they had just had. And Luke didn’t need him to voice his concerns, because he felt them just the same. It wasn’t like the fear from the warehouse, or any other kind he had ever felt around Shaw in the past. But it was fear of what was still to come.

And maybe it was the Alpha in him, or the fact that he was high off of pheromones and pleasure, but Luke felt the need to reassure him. It didn’t matter whether or not they would be able to leave what had just happened in between those four walls when they finally left Russia. It was about the line they had just crossed and what that would actually mean for them.

Luke’s hand climbed from where it had been, all the way to the back of Shaw’s head. The digits wrapped around the back of his neck in a tight grip, but not one meant to bruise. If they had been there under different circumstances, that was the place Luke’s bite would be. But he would have to settle for his hand instead. The gesture brought some much needed relief to Shaw’s face, as he snuggled further into Luke’s embrace. 

Luke knew there was no point in fighting. They had done what they had and there was no going back now. All they could do was assure each other it had had to be done and move on. Their jobs, not to mention the world, depended on that, if nothing else. They could always blame it on their jobs if none of the other thousand reasons did the trick.

“Are you okay?” Luke whispered, using his free hand to slowly readjust the vine like grip Shaw’s legs still had around his waist. Shaw seemed to understand and sighed, relaxing further down into the mattress. All he did was nod. Oh, so they were back to head gestures again. Okay. That was fine with Luke.

Something changed in Shaw then. Wherever his mind had just taken him to, brought an even deeper blush forth to his cheeks and his eyes looked everywhere but up at Luke’s. The head gestures, Luke could deal with. But there was no point in being ashamed now. Especially since they were still deeply connected together and wouldn’t be going anywhere anytime soon.

“Look at me” Luke sighed when the words seemed to only make Shaw look further away. That wasn’t the greatest start to that conversation, but Luke wasn’t about to back away from it “Come on, I’m not going to command you to do it. So, please” Luke was well aware, and knew Shaw knew it too, that at that point he had great power over him. But they weren’t bonded. By all means, Luke was only there to provide Shaw with the relief he needed. He had absolutely no right to demand anything in return or force him into anything he didn’t want. And Shaw probably agreed, since he sighed once more before his eyes met Luke’s “There you are. Now listen to me”

“I know the situation is awkward, okay? At best. We work together and here we are” Luke gestured to the room, though he was sure Shaw got the idea “This doesn’t have to mean anything, alright? Not if we don’t want it to. I’ll help you through this heat until it is done and then we don’t ever have to speak of this again. Things can continue just as they always have. You have my word”

The laugh that escaped Shaw certainly surprised Luke. He saw no reason for laughter, but he had to guess it was the lesser of two evils. He had no idea what he would have done if his words had gotten the opposite reaction out of him. Anger, he knew how to manage. Tears tended to render him useless.

“Jeez, why are you so bloody decent sometimes?” Okay. It meant nothing then. That was fine. Luke told himself it was fine. It didn’t matter. Luke watched as Shaw closed his eyes, clearly settling down for some much needed sleep. Luke pulled a pillow from the top of the bed, since they were spread sideways and Shaw lifted his neck for it. Luke was just about to turn them on their sides before Shaw stopped him, hands spread on his back to keep him in place “Did I say you could move?”

“I don’t want to crush you, jackass” Shaw rolled his eyes and Luke felt the sting of the rejection sooth a little. Then he told himself it wasn’t a rejection, since there had been nothing on the table between them to begin with. But that’s still what it felt like to him “I’m _decent_ , remember?”

“Oh, bloody hell! Forget I ever said that and just lay down already” Luke wrapped an arm around Shaw’s shoulders and rested his forehead on top of his chest. Their legs were tangled up together and soon enough, Shaw’s breathing evened out. Luke closed his eyes, counting the times the man’s chest moved up and down. And faster than Luke thought possible, sleep found him too.

* * *

Deckard woke up when another orgasm ripped through him. Hobbs’ knot had pulsed in his sleep, pressing up into his prostate. It hadn’t gone down much, to Deckard’s surprise. He felt better rested, which was an indication enough that some time had indeed passed. Hobbs’ was fast asleep on top of him, his warmth a constant against his body. 

Hobbs woke up when Deckard failed to get control over his breathing, riding through the waves of pleasure. Hobbs blinked his eyes open, lifting his head to make sure he was okay. He gave Deckard an apologetic look, as if to say that this was indeed how his knots usually behaved. There was also a hint of amusement in the curve of his lips.

“Don’t look at me like that” Deckard groaned, the sound dying inside his throat when Hobbs’ hand suddenly closed around his dick. Truth be told, Deckard hadn’t even noticed that his dick was still hard. In between the orgasms and the sex, followed by the comfort and sleep, that had been the least of his concerns.

“What?” Hobbs chuckled on top of him, his thumb pressing softly against the head, collecting the bead of precum there before sliding the whole way back down to the base. Deckard chose to ignore how Hobbs squeezed him _just_ right “I just can’t help but be _decent_ , you know? But don’t worry, princess. As soon as this is over, I’m right back to bitching you around. Until then, I suggest you enjoy me being nice”

“Nice? You call _this_ being nice? Look at me neck!” Deckard pointed to his skin, which was tender all around his chest, collarbones and up to his jawline. He had meant to sound more outraged than he had managed, but he blamed the tightness of Hobbs’ fist around his cock for how strangled the words sounded “This is the worst case of beard burn I’ve ever had!”

Deckard hadn’t expected the way Hobbs pressed him further down into the mattress. His knot pulsed along with the beat of his heart and Deckard could feel his heat approaching in the form of another wave. The fog descended over his brain, though slower this time. His lips parted and Hobbs sucked at the bottom one before softly pulling at it. Then his mouth was by Deckard’s ear and he had to hug the man’s back so he wouldn’t float away in the haze.

“Oh, I’m sure I could show you just how _nice_ beard burn can be” And Deckard would believe him. He would believe anything the man told him at that point. The sky was red? Sure. Elephants can fly? Course they can. Nothing seemed impossible at that very moment. Deckard couldn’t help but fuck up into the heat of that hand, the grip just right to get him harder, but not cum quite yet “I would love to get my mouth on your ass, my beard wet with your slick and make you shut your pie hole while I eat you out”

The words were enough to rip the fifth and strongest orgasm out of Deckard. His hips stilled, a loud cry out of his mouth as Hobbs fucked up into him. The knot barely moved, but it was enough to throw him over the edge. The mental image of Hobbs eating him out was just too good. He imagined the beard Hobbs had been sporting lately drenched in his slick and he moaned, even as he tried to regain control over himself. He could imagine the tingling of the burn everywhere down _there_ and it made him whine.

Hobbs chuckled, warm tongue tracing the curve of his pec and upper abs, cleaning him. The mess of slick and cum down under was beyond fixing at this point, but still the gesture was nice. Especially since Hobbs was using his mouth to do it. Deckard was sure that if he could, he’d start getting harder again. But he was so spent, his cock couldn’t even be bothered to try. 

All that mattered to Luke was Shaw’s pleasure. They could banter and bicker like an old married couple, alright. And save the world every other Thursday. But within these walls, Luke had only one goal. The world could fix itself for a change. Knowing Shaw was satisfied with their first encounter, which was the most important thing during a heat, Luke’s knot started deflating within minutes. He came once more, panting into Shaw’s chest until he could pull out. Shaw groaned, his legs letting Luke move away from in between them as the man stood.

Shaw dozed off for a while and in the meantime Luke cleaned himself up in the shower. There was no telling how many more knots would be required for Shaw’s heat to end or how many days it would take. Most likely two. Luke needed to make some phone calls, make sure Sam could stay another day at her friend’s house. If she were okay, he could let himself forget everything else. He also needed to order food and water for Shaw, since the room wasn’t stocked for two. 

Once wrapped in the hotel robe, Luke left the tub to fill itself. There was a selection of bath salts to choose from, but Luke knew Shaw’s nose would probably hate all of them. He didn’t want to wake him up, but who better than Shaw to let him know what exactly he wanted? Shaw had his eyes open, but didn’t seem to be anywhere near the room. However, as Luke approached the bed, his eyes seemed to focus once more.

And Luke chuckled at the grabby hands Shaw made at him. It was such a childish gesture, it ripped the laugh right from his chest. Shaw was spread on the bed, flushed and exposed, looking every bit as debauched as Luke knew he felt. It was a sight to see.

“Later, princess. I’ll keep you fucked out until this is over, I promise. But for now, a bath. Then some food. How does that sound?” Deckard hummed in agreement, head lolled to the side as he blinked his eyes fully open. The heat had subsided for now. They probably had another hour before the next wave hit him “Can you walk?”

Deckard only hummed, pushing himself up with his arms. But hissed at moving his legs. A hot bath did sound lovely. Hobbs chuckled again. The bastard seemed to be having a ball. His large hands grabbed Deckard’s, pulling him up until he was standing. He waited a second to see if Deckard could stand on his own, then decided he couldn’t. Hulk moved so fast, Deckard could do nothing but gasp at how Hobbs hoisted him up. Deckard’s legs, though sore, wrapped around his waist with no problem.

“You gonna groan and hum at me until this is over?” Deckard’s forehead rested against Hobbs’ chest, the man not setting him down until the tub was full. He sat on the edge of it, easily supporting both of their weights until the temperature seemed good enough for him.

“Eat me, wank stain” Deckard hid the smile adorning his face against Hobbs’ neck, resting further against him. Hobbs chuckled loudly, standing. His large hand was keeping their chests pressed together, his other arm around Deckard’ ass. 

“I’m planning on it, princess” He chuckled once more, before slowly lowering Deckard into the tub.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Find me on social media:
> 
> Twitter: @SofiaVolkerling // Tumblr: faded-green-of-bruises
> 
> XoXo


	5. Just Now Waking Up

And did Hobbs keep his promise. Deckard woke up and couldn’t help but sigh. The past two days had provided him with the best sex of his life. Not that he would ever admit to that. Hobbs didn’t need that piece of information to hold above his head. He’d never let Deckard live it down. Despite having been awake for a while, he had decided to just lay still for a moment and allow himself to breathe.

He told the whining voice inside his head that Luke Hobbs wasn’t his Alpha. No matter how well they fit together, _that_ would never happen. Hobbs had been attentive and gentle, unlike anyone Deckard had ever spent a heat with. Or slept with, for that matter. And he _hated_ how the Omega in him was behaving. He wanted nothing more than to pretend they weren’t in Russia, and that the elephant in the room didn’t have everything to do with their relationship.

Knowing he couldn’t ignore the Hulk forever, Deckard turned on the bed. Hobbs was standing by the window, speaking to someone on the phone. Deckard had done a good job of ignoring the words so far, but he couldn’t now. Hobbs was wearing clothes, for one thing. Deckard had to assume he had gone out to buy them. The package by the foot of the bed only confirmed the notion. 

“Everything’s fine, baby. I should be home tomorrow” Deckard knew then Hobbs was speaking to his daughter. And he felt bad. The only reason they were still in that hellhole was because of him and Deckard vaguely remembered something about Sam having a game that weekend. A game which Hobbs hadn’t attended because of his heat. Of course, having to spend the heat there hadn’t been Deckard’s fault, but he still couldn’t help but feel bad about it “No, I’m not stuck in a hospital somewhere. I promise. Be nice to Angela, okay? Tell her I’ll be picking you up tomorrow night”

Deckard opened his mouth to apologize, first thing, but Hobbs’ phone rang again, not a moment later. Given how Hobbs sighed, he had been expecting the call, though he wasn’t looking forward to the conversation that would follow. Then Deckard frowned. When the _hell_ had he gotten to know the man so well?

“Good afternoon, sir. Yes, this line is secure. I understand that, sir, but Shaw and I ran into a bit of trouble” Even though Hobbs had more than assured him he wouldn’t tell Nobody the truth, his stomach dropped instantly. Deckard, for once, appreciated how fast his metabolism could burn through food during a heat, because if he had eaten already, he would have thrown up immediately “No, sir. The mission has been completed successfully. What I meant to say was that my rut was triggered. I hadn’t been expecting it until next week, but it happened. We found a mating hotel and I’m just now waking up. Shaw is a couple of floors down. We are both secure”

Hobbs had clearly thought more about the lie and Deckard appreciated the fact he seemed to have dedicated some time to mastering the craft. And he doubted Hobbs would ever understand how much he appreciated this. Being an Alpha, the world had been his for the taking from the moment he had been born. If people found out about his second gender, not only would Deckard be forced to quit the one thing he was good at, but would be charged with forgery, at best. 

Not even Hobbs knew about what had truly happened back when Deckard was in the military. He’d had access to his files and knew he had been the best captain the British government had ever seen. But his files were incomplete. And Hobbs didn’t know. Not the one person who knew him best. They hadn’t had any heart to heart conversations, by any means, but he felt like Hobbs had to be the one who knew him better. Admitting _that_ … Deckard couldn’t imagine that day would ever come. He didn’t need the world knowing what had happened that day. He was fine being the reformed criminal.

Deckard was thankful he had missed whatever ending that conversation had. Instead, he sat up just as Hobbs was turning away from the window, tossing the phone on the chair by the bathroom door. Deckard hadn’t bothered looking around the room, only now realizing it was actually quite large and well furnished. Nothing like any mating hotel he’d ever been to before. The bathtub had proven to be the most useful resource, apart from the bed, though both could easily fit the two of them. The room service had proven quite nice as well.

“So, how much trouble are we talking here?” Hobbs chuckled, though he sounded relieved. Ruts were part of their day to day lives, though they should never interfere with work. It was the Alpha’s responsibility to make sure his second gender didn’t jeopardize the mission or their safety. Hobbs decided to busy himself with packing whatever clothes needed to be disposed of, making sure to leave nothing of theirs behind with them. 

“Oh, how you wound me with your lack of faith in me” Deckard rolled his eyes, sliding to the end of the bed and pulling the bag closer. Hobbs had picked up jeans and a sweater, knowing damn well not everybody was a living furnace like himself. Shoes were on the bottom and he had to admit he had feared the worst, but he’d do just fine with those. Hobbs was dressed similarly, so he had to imagine he had only gone to one store. Though he probably hadn’t had that many options “As far as I can tell, we’re in the clear. Or at least you are. Though a rut is nothing to scoff at, my alleged rut shouldn’t have happened while on mission, being my lack of being prepared or not” Hobbs gave him a pointed look that said he didn’t blame Deckard for what had happened “We should be on our way by five, though”

“What time is it, then?” Deckard yawned, hoping that meant he could sleep a few precious extra hours. Heats always left him spent, so he needed to catch up on much deserved sleep. But Hobbs, apparently, had other plans “I could use the extra rest”

“I know. _But_ it’s two in the afternoon already and I thought you might want to grab something to eat before we head to the pick up point” Deckard did have to admit he was pretty hungry. He hadn’t eaten since some time the night before, right before passing out after Hobbs knotted him the last time. If it were two p.m., then he had been asleep for almost eleven hours “I’ve already arranged for a car, so we have some time. And I spotted what seemed to be a nice restaurant just down the street. But if you want to sleep, that’s fine”

“No, food sounds better” Deckard stretched his arms above his head, closing his eyes. Oh, small mercies, indeed. Deckard didn’t know if the Alpha in him was causing him to act like the provider, or maybe Hobbs was always like that, but he appreciated not having to think five steps ahead for once. Instead, he merely stood up and made his way to the bathroom “Do I have time for a shower?”

“Sure” Deckard chose to ignore the way Hobbs’ eyes seemed to follow him and simply closed the door.

* * *

“I’m sorry you had to miss Sam’s game this weekend” The words brought Luke straight back to reality. Said reality consisted of the two of them sharing a booth in what had to qualify as a nice restaurant in an otherwise small town in the Russian countryside. The temperature was surprisingly nice and the sun had been shining. The people were incredibly welcoming to tourists, which was what they were passing as. Luke made an effort to ignore the way the waitress looked at them. He knew _exactly_ what two grown men having lunch looked like. And being thought of as gay was the least of his worries “Did she at least win?”

“They did, yes. I’m their coach, so of course they won” Shaw rolled his eyes, but didn’t put his fork down. They had already shared quite the number of meals before, but Luke had never seen the man eat that much. He had easily ordered enough for two and was on his last plate. Luke had finished twenty minutes before “Sam and I have an understanding, in case I miss any of her games. She gets to pick the next movie we go see _and_ front row tickets to next Tay Tay concert in town”

“Seems like a lot for one missed game” Oh, and it was. Luke knew very well this was Sam milking the opportunity, being the little minx that she was. But Luke liked being the father that showed up. So many fathers in the military used their jobs as excuses to squeeze out of their duties, when all Luke wanted to do was be there for her.

“Believe me, it’s a small price to pay” Luke had never spent much time talking about Sam with people from work. Mostly because he liked to keep the two as far away from each other as possible. But he found himself talking with Shaw like they weren’t stranded somewhere remote, after infiltrating a ring of gun dealers in Russia and fucking each other's brains out “I’m the only family she has and I try to be as present as the job allows. So, when I _don’t_ get to be the father I want to be, I do whatever I can to make it up to her. It goes without saying she’s very well aware of this”

For some reason, Shaw took to staring at him when he was done talking. The waitress came and took their plates and still, Shaw didn’t take his eyes from him. Luke didn’t feel like fighting, but it was still odd for him to do so. Which was why he couldn’t let it slide.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” He was tempted to ask if there was something on his teeth, but Luke figured Shaw wouldn’t tell him even if there was. But Shaw chose to ignore the question and ask one of his own.

“Is that why you coach her football t…pardon me French, _soccer_ team?” It was Luke’s turn to roll his eyes. They had had that discussion before, and it hadn’t ended well. If Luke remembered it well, and he was sure he did, they had been locked inside a military airplane for twelve hours and he had ended up with an ice pack glued to the back of his neck for most of the flight. Who knew Shaw could kick so high in those cargo pants “Because you don’t get to spend as much time with her?”

“Yes. And bake cookies when one of her classmates is having a birthday and take her shopping for clothes” Luke knew those weren’t things the _Alpha_ of the family was supposed to do. And he hated that there was something as stupid as that distinction in their society. Luke was a single father. Of course he did those things. He was a father, above all else and he didn’t care if he had to play house and get down and dirty when it came to raising his cub. It was… well, the _decent_ thing to do “Not to mention the sleepovers. Oh, those are something else. But I go all out because it makes her happy. Food, sweets, no curfew. Maybe I do these things to make myself feel better at the end of the day. But it’s also what every father should do, Alpha or not. My main goal… I just want her to be happy. Nothing else matters”

It took Shaw a long time to come up with an answer, Luke could tell. He hadn’t meant to be so truthful, but he couldn’t help it when it came to Sam. He was bursting with pride and he wanted to show it. Sue him. The waitress came back, five minutes into the silence and shook both of them from their thoughts. She offered them dessert, but they both refused. She came back with the check not a moment later. Shaw sighed, resting back against the booth seat.

“You’re a good father” Shaw spoke with so much truth in his words, Luke didn’t know how to reply. It was the closest thing to a compliment Luke had ever gotten from him. And he was thankful he didn’t have to come up with a deep answer, because Shaw took the chance from him. When it came to ruining moments, the man sure had a knack for it “And pretty decent in bed, I might be willing to admit”

“There that word is again. Decent.” Luke couldn’t keep the smile off his face. And something in him lit up when Shaw blushed. There were few things in life better than rendering Deckard Shaw speechless and none made him feel as nice as he did in that very second. But Luke decided he didn’t want to push his luck, instead changing the subject “What about you? Ever thought about having cubs?”

“I’m an Omega, tosser” Shaw rolled his eyes so hard this time Luke had to assume he’d found his own brain. Truth be told, he hadn’t been thinking of that particular piece of information when he decided to ask the question, but he had to understand why Shaw immediately went for it “What do you think?”

“I think it doesn’t matter if you’re an Omega or not. I asked if _you_ want to have cubs” Luke kept his voice down, even though he was ninety-nine percent positive the waitress was the only other person in the entire place who spoke English. He wouldn’t chance it over something so small, though “Besides, plenty of Omegas choose not to have children. Lord knows I didn’t plan on being a father, but can’t imagine myself as anything else. So, if you’d be so kind as to answer without the usual degree of bullshitting, that’d be great”

“Of course I thought about it” Shaw sighed, knowing he couldn’t fight Luke on this point. Plenty of Omegas _did_ go through life without children. Didn’t even bond with anyone. The pressure was real, of course, dictated in everything, in media of all kinds, but there were those who rebelled “I’m not the only Omega in my family, but after I presented, my father cut all contact with those relatives. I guess you could say I wasn’t raised traditionally, especially not in that sense. But, yeah. I’ve thought about it. Don’t know if I would make a good father, though. The idea of something happening to me while…”

Shaw didn’t have to finish the thought. Luke knew exactly what he meant. Maybe because Luke had felt the exact same thing himself, back when Sam’s mother was still pregnant. He had to almost force himself to take a mission. Not because the Alpha in him made it hard to be away from the woman pregnant with his cub, but because he couldn’t bear the thought of leaving his cub to be raised without a father. It made all the sense in the world to Luke.

They didn’t exchange more than a handful of words after that. Not on the way to the airport, or on the plane. Nobody’s minions had treated them the same, which was not at all, since they didn’t even leave the cabin to check on them. They made themselves comfortable, headed to England. For some reason, Luke felt like saying something. He had never had the trouble of leaving the silence between them unfilled, but he felt the need anyway.

He didn’t act on it, though. Instead, he sat there, watching the man he wanted walk away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Find me on social media:
> 
> Twitter: @SofiaVolkerling // Tumblr: faded-green-of-bruises
> 
> XoXo


	6. Which He Didn't

Deckard felt stupid. So _incredibly_ stupid. It was just Hobbs. Fucking Hobbs, with his nice smile and large, _warm_ hands. Deckard told himself this wasn’t going to matter. They had gone an entire month without speaking. Just one tiny little month. So what? They’d done it plenty of times before. Why should it matter now? His clothes certainly didn’t matter. Or what car he drove to the rendezvous point. And there certainly wasn’t any need _whatsoever_ for the condom he stashed inside his wallet. None. Nope.

And yet, as he guided his brand new Lyonheart K into the garage, he couldn’t help but adjust his tie. Which he never wore, but somehow thought was appropriate for the occasion. Then scolded himself. There was no _occasion_ there. It was just Hobbs. Hobbs, who _insisted_ in wearing those tight tank tops and _fuck_ , that beard. Thirty days and Deckard had been stupid enough to expect the man to be clean shaven.

The rimming comment came back to him and if Deckard needed an extra minute before exiting the car, then he hoped no one would comment on it. Hobbs had what looked like a Hummer lifted, working on something underneath it. Deckard huffed. Of course. A big car for a big guy. Deckard just couldn’t, for the life of him, understand the man’s fixation with such large vehicles. Stealth, as usual, was the last thing on his mind.

“Ah, and the princess decided to grace us with her presence!” Shaw threw his suit jacket over his shoulder, hand sliding into his pocket. He couldn’t keep himself from smiling. Somehow, with only a handful of words, Hobbs had managed to make the lump inside his throat dissolve. Deckard had been so scared things would change and was relieved to find that they hadn’t. Hobbs saying they wouldn’t was one thing. Seeing really _was_ believing, huh?

“Some of us prefer to be fashionably late, She-Hulk” Deckard turned on the alarm in the car, tossing the keys to whoever Nobody had on his team that could handle a car like that. One look and he was sure the minion wouldn’t dare to return it in any other condition than the current one. Turning his attention back to Hobbs, the man was dropping the wrench he had just used, coming around to bring the car down from the lift “It’s an English thing. You wouldn’t understand” Deckard hit his shoe on the front tire once the Hummer was back on the ground “Aren’t you tired of overcompensating?”

Oh, Deckard _knew._ He knew _exactly_ the kind of comment ready to come out of Hobbs’ mouth. Deckard knew, now for a _fact_ , that Luke Hobbs had absolutely nothing to compensate for. And he still couldn’t help but feel like he’d won, given the look of pure outrage and mischief in the man’s eyes. But Deckard would probably never get to know what the response would have been.

“Here you go, agent Hobbs” They both turned to look at the Beta who walked right up to Hobbs, handing him a small plastic container, all wrapped in some kind of biohazard packaging “We expect your sample to be delivered to the medical bay before you’re deployed”

Deckard couldn’t help but arch a brow at the whole thing. He knew Nobody ran a tight ship, but he had never expected unscheduled exams such as this one. Hobbs sighed, reaching for his bag and coat, which he had clearly discarded a long while before. 

“What’s that? Surprise drug test?” Deckard was willing to make a joke about steroids, but didn’t think it’d be welcomed. He had to imagine the Alpha nature in him had been enough to trigger the changes that had brought his body to its current physique. But he still allowed himself an internal laugh, of sorts.

“No, uh…” Deckard arched his brow even higher when Hobbs took a step closer before answering “Ever since Russia, they have been keeping track of my ruts. And my suppressants”

There were millions of things Deckard could have said to that. One, that Hobbs was standing _way_ too close for comfort. Two, that this, _all_ of this, was uncalled for. Three, that he smelled really good. Not that _that_ would ever come out of his mouth. And four:

“You take suppressants?” Deckard knew for a fact that he didn’t. Hobbs went by as unchecked as an Alpha could go, taking full advantage of his prowess and the reactions his nature triggered. Hell, said reactions had probably saved _both_ of their lives. Multiple times if Deckard felt like admitting. Which he didn’t. 

“I do now”

* * *

All throughout sitting there for the debriefing, Deckard merely nodded. He nodded when he knew he was being talked to and when he felt it was necessary. Sometimes he’d nod just because Hobbs had done so to begin with. Somewhere in his brain, he knew he was absorbing everything. But the front part of his mind could only focus on those three little words.

_I do now._

Shit. Deckard didn’t ask for _this_. He didn’t want Hobbs to have to take drugs so he could keep his secret. Hell, they weren’t _that_ great as partners. And, perhaps, the worst part was how little Hobbs seemed to mind. It was a huge thing, to use suppressants and Deckard had to guess his nonchalance came from never having used them before.

Deckard had gone through five different brands before finding one with the least amount of side effects. One tiny pill a day, that didn’t leave him feeling like utter shit. Or dulled his senses to the point he felt like a bloody vegetable. It had taken adapting and learning, trial and error and he couldn’t help but feel like Hobbs would run for the hills once they kicked in, screaming bloody murder soon enough. Probably screaming _‘Shaw’s an Omega!’_ too.

And Hobbs rolled his eyes. That stupid smile was back on his face and Deckard didn’t think he had ever wanted to punch it half this bad before. Deckard was finally getting to drive, after some arguing that he would not go on this mission if they took the Hummer. Surely enough, Hobbs agreed. There. The suppressants must have already kicked in. He had expected at least a loud argument. All he got was a sigh and a _‘pick your vehicle, princess. We ain’t got all day’_.

“You’re gonna burn through your last few brain cells if you keep thinking this hard, princess” Deckard couldn’t even bring himself to be worked up about the comment. At least he hadn’t lost _all_ of Hobbs yet. Hobbs had made himself comfortable in the passenger seat, or as comfortable as a man his size could get in a sports car and kept staring ahead, though there was nothing to see but the carriers’ cargo door.

“I can’t believe you said yes to taking suppressants” There. The words were out. He hadn’t exactly said ‘thank you’ or ‘you don’t have to’, but at least Hobbs would know he was willing to talk about it. Hobbs had a talent for knowing _just_ how far to push him, an acquired skill, for sure. 

“Well, I guess I really _am_ that decent” How in all holy hell Luke Hobbs had discovered a way to render Deckard speechless, he feared he would never know. He couldn’t quite bring himself to regret spending his heat with the man, but he still regretted that poor choice of words. A month in and he already knew he might as well get it tattooed, he’d hear it so much “Don’t sweat it, princess. It’s only half the dosage, it won’t stop me from getting my ruts. It’ll just keep my scent under better control and make sure Russia doesn’t happen again”

“Russia didn’t _bloody_ happen!” Deckard hissed, his teeth clenched. Why in the fuck Hobbs was being so stubborn about this, was probably another thing he’d never understand. That was two too many, in his humble opinion. Deckard _hated_ not understanding, and right then and there, Luke Hobbs was a fucking Agatha Christie mystery to him.

“They don’t _know_ that!” Hobbs finally looked at him, but it didn’t make the situation any better. For all Deckard knew, the man was resigned to the hand he had been dealt and there was nothing he could do about it. Even if he apologized or thanked him, Hobbs would still take the drugs “I already said it’s fine. If it means we can continue working, I’ll do it. Now, heads up. We’re here”

* * *

Despite not getting the fight he had been promised, Luke had to admit simpler missions were starting to grow on him. Though they were flying commercial, there was something to be said about flying first class. Luke was quickly growing used to it. Oh, the perks were simply fantastic. Luke was a simple man with simple needs, but he had to admit it was better than flying coach. 

Shaw and himself were an hour away from making their separate ways at the airport. They would soon be taking different flights, heading different locations and bidding Munich a fond farewell. Luke was certain the city would be worth a second visit, if only the thugs there would step up their game. 

They made their way through the V.I.P. lounge together, since Nobody had arranged flights from the same company. And since Luke wasn’t a fan of sleeping on flights, he had been looking forward to taking a much deserved nap right there, on one of those comfy looking arm chairs. Hopefully squeeze in one last cup of local coffee before boarding. That was the plan, of course, until Luke sat down and had the unfortunate idea of opening his big mouth.

“How did your ribs heal, by the way?” It was clear Luke had just startled him away from his thoughts, which was an odd concept. A startled Shaw was like a fish out of water. Luke was tempted to ask if he was okay, but he didn’t think the concern would be welcomed.

“What? Oh, they healed fine” Shaw dropped his bag to the floor, undoing the buttons of his suit jacket before sitting down. Whatever he had been thinking about, seemed to still have its claws sunk deep into his mind, because he went right back to being silent. Luke had almost fallen asleep, his head supported by the headrest and his bag in between his feet “Thank you for telling me about them, by the way”

“We had far more important things to deal with” Luke heard a sigh coming from the man and turned to look at him. That was another odd piece of behaviour. Shaw looked tired, somehow. Not because the mission had been difficult or because he hadn’t gotten a good night's sleep. It wasn’t physical. He looked tired down to his very soul. And Luke hated the surge of worry that engulfed him.

“I realized I never thanked you for taking the fall for me. For keeping my secret” Luke hadn’t expected _that_ conversation. Well, he hadn’t expected _any_ conversations, of any kind. But he wouldn’t stop Shaw if he wanted to talk. Hell, the man hardly ever opened his mouth if not to bitch at Luke for something, so this was a nice change of pace for him “When I presented, I… It was bad enough. My father, he… he was a cruel man. And mum was hardly ever around. Not that I blame her, really. But it was me against him. I had to protect Owen and our sister from him. And when I presented, he was angry. As if the signs hadn’t been obvious enough”

“He made me surpress myself from the age of fourteen. Told me I would no longer have a roof over my head if I acted like a little Omega bitch. His words, not mine” Luke arched his eyebrow in shock, though Shaw hadn’t been looking at him. He couldn’t imagine a father doing that to their fourteen-year-old son. It wasn’t Shaw’s fault, for crying out loud “As soon as Owen and our sister grew up enough to take care of themselves, I enlisted. I lied about my gender, of course. Passed every test they threw my way and, after that moment, I kept as much distance from my family as I possibly could”

There wasn’t much Luke could say to _that_ , so he figured the only fitting move would be to reply in kind. Truth for truth. They were being honest with each other and Luke knew it couldn’t be easy for him. Luke could only imagine how little faith Shaw had in people, given his gender and obvious childhood trauma and those words were very telling of the man Luke had gotten to know. The mental image of a little Shaw, taking a stand against that asshole of a father for his family, was haunting. 

Looking back on it, Luke should have seen it coming. Of course Shaw was an Omega. The signs had all been right there. Shaw had gone out of hiding, after living like a ghost for almost nine years, because his brother had turned up comatose in a hospital. Though his actions had been ruthless and straight up diabolical, Luke understood his misguided intentions behind them. Family. There was hardly anything he wouldn’t do for Sam. He got it.

There hadn’t been much about Shaw’s family in his file, apart from his psychotic baby brother Owen and a sister whose name was blacked out. Apparently she had followed in on her big brother’s footsteps and had enlisted as well. An Alpha, as far as Luke could tell. His files also contained detailed accounts of how Shaw had gone rogue. How he had killed the members of his squad, seemingly out of the blue and had disappeared from the face of the Earth.

None of it seemed to add up. Why would a man who was willing to risk a lifetime in jail for a brother kill his entire military family? Maybe things didn’t seem to make sense because Luke felt like he knew the man better now. Shaw was a protector. He could be ruthless and merciless about it, but bottom line, that’s what he was. For the first time since reading Shaw’s file back at the hospital, he couldn’t picture the man doing half the things his previous employers accused him of.

“Hey, don’t sweat it, okay?” Luke sighed, snuggling further down into his seat. Shaw had clearly been expecting a response, shaking his head at himself for being so revealing about it all. Luke felt the strong need to reassure him it was okay. He could _trust_ Luke. He was willing to be the one person Shaw could count on. Especially outside work “I come from a large family of Alphas myself” 

Well, at least those words got the man to look at him. Shaw arched an eyebrow, as if to say ‘yeah, no shit’ and Luke chuckled. When he had started to have full conversations with Shaw’s eyebrows, he had no idea. But the thought amused him. They knew each other well. Luke had to guess you got to learn a lot about someone when sitting in the trenches with them.

“Yup. Not a single Beta. Not a single Omega. For generations” Luke could still remember his grandpa sitting him down, back on Samoa and showing him what had seemed to be endless pictures at the time. All black and white, showing generations of the Hobbs family. He vaguely remembered him saying something about being a family of Alphas for over three generations now “You can imagine what Christmases at the Hobbs household were like”

Deckard couldn’t, actually. His family hadn’t gotten together to celebrate a holiday in over twenty years. But he found himself laughing right along with Hobbs. He imagined a house, full of Hobbs’ brothers, cousins, aunts and uncles and figured that it had to be something out of this world. It made him feel homesick. Made him miss a home he hadn’t had in a really long time. Maybe not even back when he used to live in it.

“Anyway, when I presented as an Alpha, it came to no one as a shock” Deckard was thankful that Hobbs didn’t seem to notice that his smile had deflated just as fast as it had appeared. They were used to laughing at each other’s insults, but this was way off track for them. He focused on the man’s words, instead. And scrubbed from his mind the vivid memory of Hattie coming down the stairs and jumping into his arms every Christmas morning “Not only because of family, but all the signs had been there. But I still felt like everything changed overnight. I was just so _angry_ all the time”

“I spent six whole months picking fights with just about anyone willing to look at me funny” Hobbs huffed, probably at some memory his words had evoked. He thought of a fifteen-year-old Hobbs, picking fights after school and he had to admit it sounded accurate. Deckard knew how much an Alpha was affected by their second gender, whereas Betas and Omegas got off easy “Every other day, mom would have to stitch me up. Sometimes Lisa, my sister, would do it. And the changes to my body too. I couldn’t contain all that rage and it just kept spilling out of me. My brothers tried explaining it to me, tried helping me, but I guess it brought out everything bad about me. All the things I’m not proud of about myself and my family. About my father”

Deckard wanted to ask what in the bloody hell he was talking about. Picking fights was normal and so was the rage. Part of him wanted to say that Hobbs was just being a dramatic little bitch. But the other part, the rational one, reminded him he was in no position to judge. Though he felt like Hobbs wasn’t that much of a stranger anymore, what with a couple sentences exchanged, he still didn’t know him well enough to say. So, he did what he did best. He changed the subject.

“And what about Sam?” Hobbs hadn’t done much talking about his daughter, up until the previous month in that restaurant. Deckard had been surprised to find out the man had a kid, considering how his file had been blank in that area. But he shouldn’t have trusted a piece of paper, to begin with. Deckard did know, however, that the woman Hobbs had had Sam with was no longer in the picture. But any further information had been sealed off “Is she an Alpha too?”

“Like every Hobbs woman before her. She hasn’t presented yet, of course, but the signs are there. She reminds me so much of myself when I was her age” Deckard had only seen Sam in the pictures Hobbs had shared with him. And from the way he spoke of her, she had to be an absolute angel “Gosh, I can only imagine what school is going to be like when she does. Kids can be such assholes and the last thing I want is to have to put her in an all Alpha school. I’m just not ready for that talk just yet. It’s in times like these I wish her mother was still around”

“I’m sorry she’s not” The words clearly surprised Hobbs, but they did an even bigger job on Deckard. Truthfully, Deckard couldn’t imagine having to raise a child alone. Sure, he had done so himself. But he was just the big brother. He didn’t have to worry about working, paying bills or teenage hormones. He hadn’t been lying when he’d told Hobbs he’d thought about having cubs. It was the thought of leaving them to raise themselves that scared him.

“Sam’s mother and I hooked up only once. Back then, I was an inconsequential little shit and she had been in rut at the time. Nine months later and _voilà_ ” Deckard really didn’t want to sit through Hobbs telling him about sleeping with someone. The Omega in him probably wouldn’t be able to stand it. Hell, _he_ wouldn’t be able to stand it. After everything they’d done in that hotel, it had been pretty difficult to keep _those_ feelings at bay. He didn’t need to bring them back now “Truth be told, I hadn’t known about the pregnancy until she was about six months along. She just called me one day, saying the cub was mine. Now come to think of it, how she found my number, I have no idea. But, yeah. I did a paternity test, just to be sure. And sure enough, she was”

Yeah. That wouldn’t do. Deckard would do just about anything to get out of that conversation. He even considered hiding in the bathroom until his flight was announced, but a quick check and his watch showed him he still had thirty-two minutes before boarding would be allowed. He sighed, doing his best not to meet the man’s eyes. 

“I had never felt fear like that before in my life” The words got Deckard to quit moping and actually look at Hobbs. The man was staring straight ahead, clearly lost in whatever place his mind had wandered off to. Fear. That wasn’t something he liked to think someone like Hobbs could feel. Though he knew it was stupid to think so, he couldn’t help it “At that point, I had already been in the military for a while and thought I’d seen it all, you know? But nothing could have prepared me for that. For her”

The smile on Hobbs’ face was hard to look at and even harder to look away from. It was obvious to him Sam had her father wrapped around her finger and Deckard did his best to swallow the lump in his throat. From what Hobbs had told him back at the restaurant, Deckard had been right in saying he was a good father. But, somehow, knowing the whole story behind it, only worked to further cement the thought in his brain. And that proved to be a risky thing.

A family of his own was the one thing Deckard had always told himself he couldn’t have. At least, not while he was on the run. But he wasn’t running anymore. He wasn’t in the best of terms with his government, or most governments if he were being honest, but he felt like his life had a bit more stability these days. He begrudgingly admitted it was largely thanks to Hobbs. He wasn’t running anymore and all of those wishes and desires Deckard had buried deep inside himself were starting to catch up to him.

“I arrived at the hospital to visit Sam and her mother and well,” Hobbs barked out a laugh, looking anything but amused at whatever he was about to say next “Another bomb dropped on me. Her mother had vanished. Not ten minutes before I arrived” Deckard couldn’t imagine that also. Sure, Hobbs and said woman hadn’t bonded or anything, but a cub connected the two. He couldn’t imagine arriving to find her gone “And, now thinking back on it, I might have been able to forgive her. But then the nurse brought Sam to me and she had been desperately wailing. As if she _knew_ , you know? As if she knew her mother had abandoned her. And uh… I haven’t heard from her since. Would probably say a lot of shit to her face if I ever had the chance so it’s better this way. Sam is mine and nothing is ever going to change that. I just wish I didn’t have to be a father and a mother sometimes”

Deckard had no idea how long had passed, but they sat there in perfect silence. A companionable one, at that. At one point, Hobbs got up and made his way to one of the many coffee places around the lounge. Deckard huffed. Munich had definitely won Hulk over with their choice of caffeinated beverage. And he couldn’t help but hide his smile behind the cup Hobbs handed him. Tea. Twinings Breakfast tea, to be precise. Deckard couldn’t remember ever telling the man _that_ particular bit of information, but there the cup was anyway. With a little milk and a sugar cube.

Attentive, as per usual. Bloody _decent_ too. Deckard had no idea what got into him, but he lifted his cup, in what had to be the world’s strangest toast and waited for Hobbs to follow his lead. Hobbs scoffed, bringing his cup to meet Deckard’s halfway.

“Her loss, wank stain” Hobbs gave him that kind of blinding smile and Deckard had to tell himself to keep breathing. Just keep breathing. It was an okay comment to make, right? No lines crossed there. He really did believe it was the woman’s loss. And Sam’s gain. And hell, probably Deckard’s too. In all the aspects of the word.

Just as they finished their cups, Deckard’s flight was announced. He knew for a fact Hobbs’ wouldn’t be long now, but he was suddenly tired of being the one who walked away first. A voice inside his head screamed he wanted to have the opportunity for the both of them to stay, for once. But he soon strangled it. It wouldn’t happen. Deckard sighed, tossing his cup out and getting up. With his bag over his shoulder, he started making his way towards his gate.

“See ye ‘round, Hulk” Hobbs chuckled, lifting his empty cup in a salute “Tell Sam I said hi”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Find me on social media:
> 
> Twitter: @SofiaVolkerling // Tumblr: faded-green-of-bruises
> 
> XoXo


	7. And Months Since Bulgaria

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like I said before, I changed a few things from canon. Here they are, mostly.

What the hell had he meant by that? _Tell Sam I said hi_. Luke told himself that if he truly was a great father, he’d be smart to keep his daughter as far away from Deckard Shaw as possible. But he couldn’t go against all the evidence he had collected over the past few years and, most recently, months. He’d trust Deckard with Sam. There. The thought scared the living shit out of him, but Luke was nothing if not honest with himself.

Hell, he’d trust Deckard with quite a bit. His life, for one. His job. And, most recently, his so called retirement and whatever semblance of a normal life that he might have. Because he should have known. He should have known that something was wrong the second Locke walked into that diner. And in front of Sam too. _Fucker_. He knew Luke wouldn’t say no if Sam knew how important his presence in the mission was.

But when he was told of a supervirus going up for auction and that his mission was of the collect information kind, he thought it’d be easy enough. And, as per usual whenever Shaw was involved, had his arrogant cockyness come back to smack him on the ass soon enough. His sister. His _fucking_ sister! Oh, _no_. No, no. That hadn’t even been the worst part about it. For starters, Luke had to fly to London, on a last minute flight, which just so happened to be crowded. Had to face what seemed to be the opening of the seven skies above him as soon as he touched down, without an umbrella. 

Also, had to have the man he had been having the weirdest fantasies about point a gun at his face. Only to discover the woman he had been told to chase was his fucking baby sister. His stomach had dropped at the rage dripping from Shaw’s voice. Hadn’t he been taking his suppressants, Luke would have gone into overdrive at that. He couldn’t help but dread what this new predicament would mean for them. He had managed to brush it off easily enough with a joke, like he always did whenever Shaw was there, but the explosion that followed sent all of those thoughts out the window. Along with half the building, of course. 

If Shaw noticed how Luke immediately jumped in front of him before the shockwave of the explosion could hit him, he chose not to say anything. The Alpha in him roared loudly inside his head and he just moved. He didn’t think about finding cover. He didn’t even think of himself or the people around him. All he could think about was Shaw. But the man didn’t give him a second thought as he pushed him aside, got up and raced to the edge of the building, where the windows had been a moment before, yelling after his sister.

So Luke told himself everything else could wait. Hattie being safe was what would make Shaw happy so that’s what he’d focus on for now. But the worst part about it had to have been Brixton. Shaw’s _ex_. Luke had to stand there, having his ass handed to him while Shaw merely watched. The look of pure disbelief on his face worried Luke like nothing else could.

Shaw had the gun that would put the man down and yet he didn’t move. He stood there, frozen. Until Luke’s body made contact with the ground for the third time. Luke yelling after him must have kicked him out of stupor, because soon enough Shaw had the man engaged in a fight. A fight he couldn’t win. Luke had seen Shaw do some pretty amazing things. They had to drop an entire building on the man just to slow him down. 

But his mind was not in the fight. And Luke hated it. Hated how he immediately knew there had to be more to the story. Then he felt even angrier at himself for thinking he had the right to demand any explanations from Shaw. But he couldn’t stop himself anyway. As soon as Hattie turned in for the night, in Shaw’s bunker-ish hide out spot, Luke was there, right up his face. And Deckard wanted to smack him. For everything. 

For thinking he needed to be saved from the explosion. For getting in a fight with his sister. For standing so _bloody_ close. Seriously. What was it with this guy and personal space? Though the Omega in him most certainly did _not_ mind the proximity, Shaw stepped out of his way anyway. He had more important things to take care of. Such as his sister’s recklessness and the world thinking he was a traitor. Again.

Deckard knew Hattie’s comment about betraying his team had piqued Hobbs’ interest. But he couldn’t bring himself to care at the moment. And, though he silently prayed Hobbs wouldn’t ask, he should have known better than to hope. Instead, Hobbs sat on his desk, right next to the computer screen Deckard told himself was far more important than the Alpha he had been desperately horny for. 

“I don’t want to talk about it” Deckard spoke first, hoping Hobbs would catch the bloody hint. But, if he did, he made the conscious effort to look right past it. Instead, he unbuckled his belt, dropping his gun on the floor. Probably not a smart move, since they were being hunted, but he could understand wanting to be as far away from it as possible. After the beating they’d taken, they had been around enough violence for a day “So beat it, She-Hulk”

“Not gonna happen, princess. First, your sister beats my ass. Which you never managed to achieve, by the way. Kudos to you, though. You did right by her” Deckard closed his eyes while he had his back turned to Hobbs. There had been one too many conversations about family between them. He regretted ever telling him about his father. No way he’d make the mistake of telling him about Brixton too. Then he told himself to get his head out of his ass and stop being so proud. If he couldn’t tell Hobbs, he couldn’t tell anyone. Hattie would forever be his baby sister. 

But Hobbs had had the chance to walk away, go back to his house and kid and yet, had chosen to stay. Hobbs had chosen to stay and help him and Deckard had to bite his lip through the whine that wanted to escape his chest. He could use some taking care of right about now. His entire body was sore and he felt like one giant bruise. Whatever the fuck had happened to Brixton, he had finally learned how to throw a punch.

“Brixton was part of my team, alright? Back when I was in the military” Deckard sighed, resting his hip against one of the many tables he used for his computer set up. He put as much space in between himself and Hobbs, in the hopes that it would somehow grant him the clarity he sought. Shockingly, it didn’t. If anything, he wanted to hide against the man’s chest and let him handle this. Which was the stupidest thought to ever cross his mind “Killing him was what started this whole mess in my life. Captain Deckard Shaw, remember? I was good at my job. I _loved_ my job. And Brixton was my lieutenant”

Hobbs nodded, encouraging him to continue. There was a cut on the inside of Hobbs’ left bicep and, if the man noticed it, he had chosen to ignore it for the time being. But Deckard’s eyes, now that they had found it, couldn’t seem to look away. The Omega in him growled and he sighed, throwing all of his hopes for some distance out the window and reaching for the first aid kit he had in every hideout. Hobbs smiled at him approaching and Deckard told himself it was okay. Hobbs knew. Hobbs knew this wasn’t an instinct he could fight. Probably not after the amount of stress he had just been under. But he didn’t say anything. No jokes, so… small mercies, once more.

“I had been seeing him outside work for weeks, but it wasn’t serious” Hobbs’ entire body went stiff. Deckard was sure he had heard Brixton talk about their time together not a couple of hours before, so he didn’t immediately understand the reaction. First he thought he had used too much force while cleaning the cut, but Deckard had seen Hobbs get hit by a truck and not even flinch. Then he got it. Hobbs probably thought it was history repeating itself and Deckard understood how it made him look.

“Is that what you do with your exes, then? Off ‘em, just like that?” Hobbs then hissed, because Deckard made damn sure he used too much pressure this time “Hey! Jesus, princess. Thank fuck you ain’t a nurse, cause _jeez_!”

“Are you gonna let me finish or will you continue to so rudely interrupt me? You’re the one who wanted to know, remember?” Hobbs’ nostrils flared at Deckard’s defiance, but he told himself Hobbs could go fuck himself. Or fuck _him_. Either way, Deckard was fine with it. Shit. “I spent my bloody heat with you, didn’t I? Brixton never got to have that. Happy, now? No need to be jealous, tosser. Now shut up and let me continue”

“It wasn’t serious with him. Not to me, at least. But, when the orders for the hit came, I wasn’t surprised. I don’t think the office knew about me and him at that point, they just chose me because I was the leader” Deckard tied a bandage loosely around Hobbs’ arm, now that he knew the cut wasn’t deep. And he hoped to coax the man into a shower before their flights. There was far too much dirt and hell knew what else on his skin for him to go undetected “Brixton was an aggressive Alpha and had become a bloody liability. He had been violent towards the team before and kept going off about everything he thought was wrong in the world. Like only he could fix it. So, when the time came, I took him out. Or so I thought I did. Now he’s some kind of super soldier, on top of being an abusive Alpha”

“Did he ever hurt you?” That wasn’t the kind of follow-up question Deckard had been expecting. Standing there, now with his arms crossed over his chest, he saw why the topic was so triggering to Hobbs. The idea of another Alpha being so close to Deckard made all of him go into overdrive. Looking into the man’s eyes, the one memory he had been trying to avoid crept back into his mind. But he willed it away. With all of his might. And forced the blush back down as well.

“He tried. A few times. At the time, I thought it was just how an Alpha normally behaved. I quickly learned how wrong I was” But the memory was right there, reflected in Hobbs’ eyes. Somehow they were talking about something completely unrelated...Well, _mostly_ unrelated, and yet Deckard felt like they were both on the exact same page. Bulgaria. Three months ago. Lovely country. Even lovelier fuck “But you know I would never let myself be taken advantage of”

Deckard managed to will the words past his dry lips and Hobbs nodded. The man’s eyes immediately moved to capture the movement of his tongue as it grazed over his chapped lips. Hobbs’ own lips parted and _fuck_ , it was too much. An entire football field between them wouldn’t do _shit_. The proximity wasn’t the problem. It was the lack thereof. Deckard forced himself to keep talking. As long as he kept Hobbs focused on the story, there would be no place for memories of pheromone-less hookups and Hobbs’ mouth as he whispered those words. Shit. Deckard _knew_ he shouldn’t have taken that job in Bulgaria.

“After I followed through with my orders, somehow my team found out about me and him. I don’t know how, but I have my suspicions” Hobbs’ eyes seemed to snap back into focus and Deckard had to imagine he suffered from momentary whiplash “I managed to keep being an Omega a secret, but no one believed me when I said the orders had come from far above my pay grade. Also didn’t help when they denied said order were ever given, in the first place”

“They turned on you?” Hobbs whispered, like having all the facts somehow managed to make the entirety of what he knew fall into place. Deckard could only nod, hoping to have put the impending disaster that thinking about Bulgaria would bring behind them. Now Hobbs knew. At least Hobbs knew he wasn’t a cold-blooded killer who’d turn on his country for whatever money he was offered.

“I spent weeks running away from my team. The last thing I wanted was to make the situation worse by confronting them. But, for some reason, every time I thought I’d lost them for good, they would just pop back up. Took me a long fucking time to realize there was a tracking device embedded in me” Hobbs probably wouldn’t have believed him if Deckard hadn’t lifted his ruined sleeve to reveal the ragged scar from back when he had to remove said device. But when Hobbs lifted his hand to reach for his arm, Deckard stepped out of his reach. He would never make it through the next few minutes if he had Hobbs’ hand on him. Deckard did his best to ignore the hurt in Hobbs’ eyes “After that, I went dark, so to speak. Taking the jobs no one wanted because I needed the money. Made a name for myself, if you will. Until you came along and screwed everything up. Putting me in a maximum security prison. An Alpha prison!”

“How the fuck was I supposed to know, huh? This is the most honest you’ve ever been with me, so I think you should cut me some fucking slack, alright?” Hobbs stood when Deckard too another step back. Hobbs’ expression softened when he noticed he had done so because he’d just screamed the words. Deckard knew he couldn’t hold it against him. After everything he had said in Bulgaria, it shocked Deckard Hobbs was managing to be in the same room as him without jumping his bones. Not that he would be averted to the idea, not by a long shot. He just couldn’t bring himself to do it “Deck… Please, I…”

“No. No, please, don’t...” Deckard stepped out of his reach again, but the step wasn’t as large as the previous ones had been. He cursed himself for wanting to give in. He cursed the man in front of him, with his soft words and longing looks, and his deft hands and smart mouth. Hobbs could go really fuck himself, for all Deckard cared “Don’t call me that. You said it would be okay if I didn’t want it to mean anything. And I… this is fucking _hard_ , okay?! You _make_ me want this. Is that what you want me to say? It’s been over a year since Russia and _months_ since Bulgaria and I _can’t_ stop thinking about you”

“And I’m right _here_. Why do you keep trying to fight this?” Hobbs wanted to reach out, Deckard knew it. But he didn’t. Deckard didn’t know how he felt about that. He didn’t know how he felt about a lot of things when it came to the man in front of him “I don’t want to claim you because I want to control you, force you to play house while I go to work. I would _never_ ask you to change. I just want a chance to prove I can be your Alpha! And if your thick skull can’t understand that, then maybe you haven’t been paying enough fucking attention!”

The sound of car tires broke through the walls and Hattie came rushing into the room. Neither of them wanted to break that moment. Deckard wanted to say yes. He wanted to say yes to everything Hobbs had offered him in Bulgaria. But it was just a dream. A beautiful, yet unachievable dream. And reality had just come knocking on the door. 

* * *

Hobbs told himself he had been an idiot. Not for asking Deckard to reconsider his proposal, but for doing so at a time like that. Of course he was scared. His sister not only had a bounty on her head, but had injected herself with a deadly virus to try and keep Eteon from getting their hands on it. She was a nice girl, in Hobbs’ book. And seeing Shaw hug her, with the stench of fear soaking through the air around him made Hobbs open his eyes. To so many things. He thought back to Sam’s family tree, looking beautiful, though empty.

If even the Shaw’s could overcome their issues, so could the Hobbs family. Home. That’s where they were headed. Samoa. The place he had left at eighteen and had never dreamed of going back to since. Especially without even asking his mamma first. It’d be a showdown, for sure. One he wasn’t prepared for, but he told himself it was in the name of the greater good. He looked at Shaw. At Deckard. Fast asleep, with Hattie curled up into his side. He smiled at the image and pulled a blanket over the two of them.

The Alpha in him told himself this was all he wanted. For Deckard to be happy. For him to have his family back. He couldn’t give Deckard those years back, the years he’d spent running and fending for himself. But he wanted more. He wanted to be the one Deckard came home to. He wanted to be the one who’d convince Deckard he _would_ , indeed, be a good father. A father to the cub Luke had been desperate for since Russia. 

Bulgaria had been a box of surprises, one right after the other. Luke had never planned on pouring his heart out for the man. He had thought about it, of course, but had guessed the day would never come. And yet, they had found shelter in the cabin that, if they could even call it a cabin, Nobody had arranged for them, desperate to escape the feet of snow rapidly accumulating outside and waiting out the storm with a fire cracking and good food.

He also hadn’t planned on there being only one bed, okay? That was on Nobody. He sure as hell hadn’t planned, especially, on Deckard nearly freezing to death. He had to admit the weather wasn’t great. Or maybe they just hadn’t gotten lucky enough to get stuck somewhere in the north of Bulgaria during Summer. Deckard had taken the shower first while Luke had built them a fire and gone about making them some dinner. But they hadn’t had any spare clothes, so they had to go without anything warmer or dryer.

By the time the both of them had been fed and were warmer… well, Luke was warmer, Deckard had decided to be his usual bitchy self and had refused to share the bed with him. Which was stupid, for _obvious_ reasons. They had done much worse than just _sleep_ on the same bed before. 

“Are you _really_ not bothered by this cold?” Deckard had asked him, for the fifth time that night alone, looking outraged at him. His teeth had been clattering together as he spoke. He had been shivering in nothing but his under shirt, sitting as close to the fire as his skin would allow.

“No, princess. I’m not. Some of us just happen to be better acquainted with the sunlight and all things warmth” Deckard had rolled his eyes and made no move to get ready for bed. Instead, he had just circled his arms around himself further and had inched closer to the fireplace. Talk about a fire hazard, huh? Nobody would have hated it if they had burned the place to the ground “I guess it’s not an English thing, so you _wouldn’t_ understand. Well, _I’m_ going to bed, since I’m exhausted. I’m just saying, princess. We’ll be here until tomorrow night, at least. And there a side of this bed with your name on it”

Luke had probably been dozing off already, because he hadn’t noticed that Deckard had sat on the edge of the bed. Come to think of it now, knowing what he knew about Deckard and why the man was so scared to give in to this, it shouldn’t have come to Luke as any surprise that he had struggled so much that night. 

“Come on, Shaw. We’ve done a lot worse on a bed than just sleep on one” Deckard’s back had gone stiff at the words. Not because they hadn’t been true or because Luke had startled him. He had quickly learned nothing in this world could surprise Deckard Shaw. But that didn’t mean Luke would ever stop trying “I know, I’m sorry. I promised I wouldn’t mention it again. It’s just… I don’t want you to freeze to death, okay? It would be most inconvenient. So, just get under the covers, please”

Luke had woken up maybe an hour later, to a shivering Deckard. The shivering had only gotten worse, even under two extra blankets and being right next to Luke. Luke had rubbed the sleep from his eyes, only to have them grow wide in shock. Even in the dimly lit space, Luke had been able to see that Deckard’s lips were dangerously blue. The man had been asleep, somehow. Which had only added to Luke’s concern.

Luke had cursed, throwing the blankets away and getting up at lightning speed. He had pulled Deckard along with him, not caring whether or not the man would be angry at him for it. Deckard had come back to himself sitting on Luke’s lap, the man sitting on the only armchair the cabin had to offer, in front of the fireplace. There had been a blanket around the two of them, Luke had made sure of it. Luke always slept in his underwear, so Deckard had been laying right against Luke’s bare chest. 

“What are you doing?” Deckard had mumbled into his neck, his forehead rested against Luke’s shoulder. Luke sighed in relief. The warmth had obviously brought some life back into the Deckard, though the man hadn’t seemed to be in the mood for a fight, which Luke had appreciated immensely. 

“Saving your ass, as per usual” Had Deckard been sitting up, Luke knew he would have rolled his eyes, just for good measure. He had known Luke was right, but at that point, Deckard would have never missed the opportunity. They had remained in silence, with the two of them just sharing whatever amount of heat they had managed to come across. Luke had been rubbing a hand up and down Deckard’s back under the blanket and, soon enough, Luke had felt a tight hand grip his wrist, stopping the movement.

“Stop” Deckard hadn’t been shivering anymore, but he had still stuttered his way through that small word. And it had nothing to do with being cold. His skin hadn’t felt like ice to the touch anymore, but Luke had still worried for some time after that “It’s too fucking _intimate_. Just… stop”

“Why?” Luke hadn’t meant for the word to show just how much Deckard’s coldness towards him actually hurt. But, hey, Luke could have come up with a million different excuses for that. None of which would have fit, of course, but that had been besides the point. The point had been that all Luke had wanted was to be there for Deckard. Not because he had thought Deckard needed saving or because the Alpha in him wanted to protect the Omega in the room. It had just been Luke. All him “We’ve burned that bridge, princess”

“That was different and you know it!” Deckard’s voice had gotten so loud, everyone would have heard him, had they had any neighbors. And, no matter how much Luke had told himself to keep it together, the sound of those words on Deckard’s tongue made the Alpha in him rush to the surface so fast he couldn’t hold his own back “I wasn’t in control of myself”

“So you wouldn’t have chosen me otherwise? I just happened to be the only Alpha willing to fuck you, is that what you’re saying? Because I’m sure you remember the Alpha beating down your door. He would have _gladly_ done the job” Deckard’s jaw had gone slack with shock. See? Luke could still render him speechless. Hell, those had been the last things Luke wanted to be saying to the man he wanted for himself, but the rage had stopped him from thinking clearly “Was it really that bad, sleeping with me? Did I not fulfill your expectations? Did I lack somehow?”

There had been many things Luke had wished Deckard had said, but nothing had come out of his mouth. Instead, Deckard had stayed put, unmoving as he stared at Luke. Though he had gotten control over his voice, the words had continued to pour out of him in a steady stream. And he wouldn’t have let Deckard walk away from that conversation even if the man had made any move to stand from his lap.

“I can’t stop thinking about you. There, I said it” Deckard’s eyes had searched his for any sign of lie and he had gasped at finding none. Hell, when had _that_ happened? Luke had tried to keep Deckard at arm’s length, had tried to bury the feelings Russia had stirred up in him. But to no avail. And maybe he had been seconds away from losing the man forever, but he had needed to say those words. Luke would have never forgiven himself if he hadn’t come clean “I promised you nothing was going to change. And it hasn’t. Not at work. But I’m willing, Deck… I’m willing to see where this goes, if you are. I want you”

Deckard had closed his eyes, biting his lower lip at Luke’s hand moving. Luke’s hand had met his back again, moving further down. His index finger had found the waistband of his underwear, slowly, so _very_ slowly, pushing it down over his plump ass cheek. Deckard had made no move to stop him, though a soft whine had escaped his clenched teeth. His breath had hitched too. Luke had been a good student and had quickly learned all the ways Deckard liked being touched. He had never expected for the information to come in handy so soon.

Deckard had continued to bite his lip to keep himself from moaning, especially when Luke’s hand had snuck under the fabric of his underwear and cupped his ass, squeezing softly. A blob of slick had slid past his rim and Luke had felt himself grow hard inside his own underwear. The scent of arousal had been driving him up the wall with want.

“I want you” Luke had whispered again, his voice soft and low as his lips touched Deckard’s ear. Luke had finally gotten both his hands on Deckard’s ass, spreading the cheeks just right. He had wasted no time in getting the tip of his middle finger touching his hole, spreading the slick softly around the blinking rim. Deckard had growled, his nails digging into Luke’s shoulders “Tell me to stop and you _know_ I will. But that’s the last thing I want to do, Deck. I want to fuck you again. Make love to you, Shaw. Whatever you allow me to have. Again, this doesn’t have to mean anything if you don’t want it to. I would love it if it did, but whatever you want is fine with me”

It had taken Deckard all of three seconds to smash their mouths together. It was as though his hips had come alive, grinding down against Luke’s growing erection. Deckard had responded in kind to everything Luke had offered him, moaning into his mouth with fervor. Luke had quickly removed Deckard’s undershirt, the two of them glad to finally have their skins come together.

“Can I ride you?” Deckard had whispered into his mouth, his lips swollen from the force of their kissing. And Luke had huffed, groaning at the prospect of Deckard Shaw riding him. When Luke had tried to stand up and move them to the bed, however, Deckard had forced him back down. “Right here”

“Fuck, Deck…” Deckard had pushed the blanket away from them, letting it fall to the floor. All fear of Deckard still being cold had vanished from his mind once Luke had seen how flushed his skin had become. It was beautiful to look at. Luke’s hands had immediately reached for his nipples, pinching them softly and enticing the most delicious moan Luke had ever heard. Deckard had kissed him again, tongue soon tracing Luke’s jaw “Of course you can”

Deckard’s hand had expertly found his cock and freed it from his underwear. Given the amount of slick Deckard had already been producing at that point, there hadn’t been any worries about lubrification. All Deckard had done was brace himself against Luke’s shoulders and had softly tapped the tip of his cock against his wet hole, building anticipation. Then he had guided the tip of his cock to his pleading hole, pushing it in.

Slowly, and so very gently, Deckard had lowered himself onto him. Taking inch by inch. Deckard had been far more participating this time around, given how his mind had been as sharp as ever as he chose to partake in this. Luke had known he hadn’t meant what he had said. Deckard had had every opportunity to back away from Luke in that hallway, but had chosen him anyway. Just like he had chosen Luke back at that cabin.

“You’re so fucking huge” Luke had smiled, hiding it into Deckard’s neck. Oh, what a feeling that had been. To have the man he wanted resting against him, panting against him, moaning his pleasure into his ear. The Alpha in him had growled in praise for the Omega. Deckard Shaw, his partner and part time lover. Luke had wanted so much more and he had known it would hurt him if Deckard chose to leave. But he would hold on to that moment forever “Goddamn it, Luke”

“You love it, Deck. I know you do” His name. That had been the first time Luke had heard his name being spoken by the man without a single drop of sarcasm or disdain. His accent had made the name sound almost beautiful, with a moan causing him to drag the last vowel. Deckard had bottomed out, panting into Luke’s chest as they had just held each other for a moment. Deckard had nodded, moving to look Luke in the eyes “We both know you do”

“I do” Deckard had rested their foreheads together, bracing his knees against Luke’s thighs and gently pulling himself up until only the head of Luke’s cock stayed tucked safely past the ring of muscles of his rim. Luke’s hand had immediately flown to the back of Deckard’s neck, holding him in place. Deckard’s eyes had lost their focus for a second at the feeling. Then he had sunk back down, dragging moans from the both of them “Fuck knows I do, Luke”

They had fucked, nice and slow, just like the first knot they had shared back at that hotel. Halfway through, Luke had taken it upon himself to fuck up into the delicious heat of Deckard’s ass, given how the man had started to lose his pace due to his thigh muscles shaking from exhaustion. And it had been the best sex of Luke’s life, followed suit by the heat he had gotten to spend with Deck. 

He had wanted to scream at the top of his lung how much he wanted Deck for himself. He wanted this grumpy ass man all to himself and the world be damned. Deckard had wrapped his arms around Luke’s neck, growling his release into his neck. Luke had followed right behind him. Even if Luke had wanted to pull out, Deckard wouldn’t have let him. The man held him tightly in place, as they tried to get better control over their breathing. They had been warm and comfortable against each other, Luke couldn’t help but sigh. For a moment there, he had gotten to hold Deck, with nothing else to steal that moment from him. But he had known it wouldn’t last forever.

“I want this, Deck. I had never thought about retiring until Russia. And I’m not saying it’ll happen anytime soon, it’s just… we work. _This_ works” Luke had squeezed Deck’s waist, indicating how well they fit together. And Luke had been willing to beg. Beg for a chance “I won’t ever ask you to quit working. Or force you into having a family with me. Hell, I know I’m a package deal in that department. But not unless it’s what _you_ want. I’m right here if you want me. And, even if you don’t, I still want us to work together. I’ll have you in whatever way I can”

Deckard had remained silent, arms wrapped tight around Luke’s shoulders, like he had forgotten how to let go. Not that Luke had minded. Luke had sighed, arms around Deck’s back as he had snuggled further against the armchair. He had been perfectly fine with sleeping right there, as long as he got to hold Deckard for a little longer.

“Oi, tosser. You can’t fall asleep” Deckard’s voice had come to him without a drop of actual annoyance, so all Luke had done was circle his waist even more, not even bothering to open his eyes “You’re still inside me”

“So? I do remember doing that quite a few times already” Luke had smiled at Deckard scoffing at his words, but both of them knew it was useless to try and deny it. Deckard had woken up on the bed, where Luke had moved him to in the middle of the night. With the storm much quieter outside, Luke had known he’d sleep better. But Luke hadn’t found it in himself to sleep again. He had spent a long time telling himself there was a huge chance Deckard would walk away once more. 

And Luke had done his goddamn best to prepare himself for when that happened. He had tried to remain positive and give the man all the space in the world, but it had still been hard. Because Deckard had stood there, mouth opening and closing as if looking for the right words to say. They had taken a few minutes to change clothes before heading their separate ways as soon as Nobody’s plane landed and Luke hadn’t been able to stand the look on Deckard’s face.

So Luke had kissed him. Had grabbed him by the back of the neck and kissed him. It probably would be the last time. Deckard had kept his eyes shut for a long moment once Luke had pulled away, blinking his eyes open. Luke had sighed, taking a step back. It had taken all of his willpower to do so.

“It’s okay, Deck. I can wait” Luke had grabbed his bag and, much like Deckard always did, had thrown it over his shoulder “And even if you don’t… Well, at least you know” Luke had kept his eyes on the ground as he turned around. He had to focus on taking the next step and then the one after, until he was far enough away to breathe in fresher air. Deckard’s scent would forever be imprinted in his mind, but he could do it without it inside his lungs “See ya next time, Shaw”

Now looking at Deckard, with a second trip to Russia under their belts, Luke prayed he’d find the words to convince the man this would be worth his while. Luke knew Deckard had been hurt before and he was willing to do whatever he had to in order to prove himself. If only Deckard would give him a chance. He would never need a second one because he would _never_ be stupid enough to let him go. 

He had promised Sam he’d put an end to this. She had seen right through him after Bulgaria and had demanded to know the truth. Though Luke had always been open with her and had never hidden from her a thing about his sexuality, he had thought it would still have come to her as a shock to hear her father talk about a man like _that_.

But all she had done was sit there and listen. Listen to Luke describe how they had gone from enemies to somewhat friends. He would never tell her what they had gotten up to in that hotel room, but he made sure she knew this was serious for him.

“I just… I wish I knew what to do to get through to him, you know, baby? That’s why I’m sad” Luke hadn’t even touched his pancakes that day, gladly letting Sam have them so they wouldn’t go to waste. As always, her grades had been impeccable, so she had more than earned the extra treats. But, at those words, she had simply put her fork down and stared at him. Only to drop on him the most incredible pearl of wisdom a nine year old possibly ever could.

“You can’t make people love you, dad. He’s probably very scared of this new thing between you two” When had his baby girl gotten so smart? Jeez! Of course he knew Deckard was scared. He had never had someone try for him before and Luke had to imagine it was scary, to finally have everything you have ever wanted being offered to you on a silver platter. But all Luke wanted was to prove to him there was no catch.

“I think you would like him, baby” Luke had found himself saying, looking at his cub. With her mane of untamed curls, she looked very much like her grandmother. With her softly upturned nose and inquisitive eyebrows, Luke had always known she’d give him hell with the boys. Or girls. Luke chuckled to himself. His baby girl was growing up so fast and it only made his desire for a larger family grow bigger “I hope you get to meet him one day”

“Who knows, dad?” Luke had taken a bite out of the pancakes, stealing her fork and making her laugh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Find me on social media:
> 
> Twitter: @SofiaVolkerling // Tumblr: faded-green-of-bruises
> 
> XoXo


	8. Mischievous and Breathtaking

Deckard had never felt like that before in his life. So suffocated. Not only was Mamma Hobbs just the most amazing woman Deckard had ever met, apart from his mum, but she seemed to have seen right through them and had taken it upon herself to befriend him. She had cleaned his clothes and fed him, all while telling him all about her son. In those few hours, Deckard had gotten to know Luke in ways he had never believed possible.

Deckard had been so surprised at the hostility Luke’s brothers and cousins had treated him with. Deckard had never thought possible that whoever had raised such a man could have a mean bone in their body. And his mum had confirmed that suspicion. But it hadn’t been until Mamma Hobbs had sat him and Hattie down that afternoon that he understood why. Luke had gone out to help his brothers and cousins with the plan for the island while Jonah worked on the machine for Hattie. For the first time in a long while, Deckard felt like he were being given the chance to breathe. Only to have the air knocked right out of his lungs.

It all boiled down to Luke’s father. A cruel and absent father. One who had been lucky enough to have an amazing array of cubs and had chosen to throw it all away for money. Though Mamma Hobbs had seen the good in Luke’s intentions, she had been the only one. She had gotten teary eyed, talking about how her own sons had forced her to cut ties with Luke, when all he had wanted to do was keep their family alive and united. In order to do that, he had to give up his home. 

The Omega in Deckard whined loudly. If he had ever needed further evidence of the kind of man Luke Hobbs was, this woman had just provided him with them. Deckard, thirty thousand feet up in the air, had decided to tell Luke the truth. About everything. How he felt and what he wanted. When, exactly, that would come to happen, he didn’t know. Considering war would be upon them within hours, Deckard had vowed he’d find a way to tell him before the impending fight. 

Luke had offered him love. And a home. A home they could build together and Deckard told himself nothing could excuse his decision to throw that chance away. He told himself none of his fears were worth losing him. He’d try. He wanted to tell Luke he’d try. But sitting there, he doubted he’d ever find the words he needed. Hobbs _had_ a family. Why the fuck would he ever want someone as fucked up as him in it? 

At the first opening, Deckard had slipped out of the house. They had spent hours building traps and laying extra constructions around the main compound of the Hobbs house and Deckard figured he could use a few minutes to himself. It was funny, if nothing else. He had finally had the chance to come clean about everything to Hattie, to have her hug him and apologize for cutting him off, only to stand there and fight her on whether or not she would get to live. Oh, the world be damned. He would _never_ lose his baby sister again. 

And speaking of Hattie, there she was. With a cold six pack of local brewed beer in hand, she sat next to him with a large smile on her face. The orange of the sunset made her skin come alive and hell, if Luke hadn’t been right. London sure as hell kept them looking all pale. He put out his arm and was happy to have her snuggle into his side. It had been a hundred degrees during the day, but the ocean waves hitting the rocks down by the ravine surely made the wind pick up its pace. 

She sighed, head resting on his shoulder. If he concentrated really hard, Deckard could almost forget the mess they were about to face. His ex was about to invade that beautiful paradise, searching for a way to kill one of the very few people he held dear, threatening to destroy everything the Alpha he wanted loved. Just another _bloody_ Tuesday, huh?

“I’m going to ask you something, Deck. And I want you to be one hundred percent honest with me” Hattie had sighed, lifting her head and turning to look at him in the eye. The sunlight made her squint, but it didn’t stop her from trying. She popped two beers open and they softly clinked them together before taking a swing. It would never come close to a Guinness pint, but it would get the job done.

“If this is about option one, Hattie, you can fucking forget it” Deckard spoke before she could, pretending to read the label on the bottle when, in truth, he couldn’t bring himself to look at her. Hattie had always been the strongest of them. She had done the unimaginable to keep that virus from hitting the streets and Deckard knew he would have never had the balls to pull that off “It ain’t happening”

“No, silly. That’s not what I want to ask. Though I’m glad to hear you haven’t changed your mind. Yet” Hattie softly knocked her elbow with his, making him look up. She had changed so much these past few years. She looked beautiful, just like mum in all those pictures they used to have on the walls. Eight years. He had lost eight years of her life and for what? “I wanted to ask you about Hobbs”

Those words brought a frown to Deckard’s face. Oh, no. Not her too. He had been sure Luke’s mother had seen it right through them as soon as they had stepped into the house. Luke had stepped in front of him when his brothers had walked into the room and Deckard could have sworn he felt her eyes digging holes into him. There had been far too many Alphas in that room for his liking and yet he had felt perfectly safe. Because Luke had been there. And Mamma Hobbs was a lot of things, but she was no fool.

“What about Hobbs?” Hattie rolled her eyes at him then and Deckard cursed internally. So that’s what it felt like to have a Shaw do that to you. He had done so purely out of habit and, if he were being honest, to piss Luke off. But fuck him if it wasn’t annoying.

“Oh, come the fuck _on_ , Deck!” Hattie laughed, wholeheartedly, at the shocked look on his face. Deckard really didn’t need any more confirmation she _knew_ exactly what had been going on between them. Deckard had thought he’d seen her flirt with Luke once or twice, but had soon stopped. Could it have been because she noticed? Hell, he hoped not. He hoped they weren’t that obvious “The way he looks at you! And stood in front of you to protect you from his own kin. That speaks volumes, right there. And he’s _so_ jealous too!”

Okay. Noted. They really _were_ that obvious. _Shit!_

“Hobbs? Hobbs is jealous? Are we talking about the _same_ Hobbs?” Deckard took another swing of his beer, feeling like he wasn’t drunk enough for that conversation. Deckard had never been able to keep secrets from Hattie, but he sure as hell was going to keep trying. Then he told himself not to be so stupid. This was Hattie. If he couldn’t admit his feelings to his own sister, how the fuck did he plan on doing just that to the man himself? “You’re not making any sense, Hats”

“Oh, _please_. You know you can’t lie to me. Glad to see that hasn’t changed either” Hattie laughed, having another drink before becoming serious again. She knocked their shoulders together in a peace offering, just in case Deckard felt like she were being too mean. Which she wasn’t, of course. He knew she was right “You two bicker like an old married couple. And you smell like him, Decks. It’s faint, but you do. Is there, uh… Is there anything you wish to share with your baby sister?”

Deckard sighed. Then told her everything. Told her about Toretto and his family. About Owen and Cypher. Followed by a detailed description of Deckard’s time in jail and his attempted escape, only to find himself forced to work with Luke by Mr. Nobody. If she noticed Deckard had called him ‘Luke’, she chose not to say anything. Instead, she just reached for a second beer and nodded for him to continue. 

Deckard blushed to the deepest shade of red his skin could possibly achieve when he told her about his heat and about Russia. But her face hadn’t changed. If anything, she only became more interested. Though she never stopped him in order to ask questions or comment, her face was quite telling of where her thoughts were. But Deckard chose not to go there yet. He’d have plenty of time for that later. 

Bulgaria followed soon enough. So did his decision to tell Luke the truth. Now _that_ piqued her interest, for sure. His beer laid unfinished by the rocks at their feet, so she helped herself to another. They were probably already lukewarm, but Deckard knew for a fact Hattie could handle her liquor. Hell, out of everyone on that island, she was probably the one who most deserved it. The sun had long since set by the time Deckard sighed, finished. It felt surprisingly good to let it all out.

“So, he helped you through your heat. Very nice of him, wouldn’t you say so?” And there it was. The teasing. Deckard felt almost relieved to know she was still going to roast the shit out of him. Feelings had never been forbidden between them, but the teasing was a given when it came to the Shaw family “Then he acted like a decent person towards you, not once acting like a chauvinistic arsehole. Again, very nice of him”

There that word was again. Decent. It had haunted him ever since Russia, though he couldn’t quite bring himself to hate it, no matter what he said or thought. He had meant it and Deckard was a lot of things, but he was at least honest. And Luke had never done anything to deserve anything else from him. 

“Then, he sexed you up _good_ in a cabin somewhere, all followed by a lovely mating proposal! Deckard Shaw, what the fuck are you waiting for?” Deckard would have spit his beer had he been drinking it still. Oh, the embarrassment those words caused him. He prayed that conversation never saw the light of day, ever again! “Deck, he told you, with all the letters of the alphabet, that he wants this! That he wants you. He looks at you with this longing, it’s almost painful. And he’s clearly desperate to put Brixton down. And it has nothing to do with the virus or Eteon. You’re smart enough to have figured out why by now”

Deckard remained silent for a long time. He just couldn’t find the right words. Hattie had always been the one with that talent. He thought back to the house behind them, bursting at the seams with a family willing to put all of their troubles aside for his sister. Because Luke had asked them to. He doubted he’d ever be able to thank these guys for what they were doing for them. And Deckard knew Luke hadn’t done so in hopes that he would feel compelled to give the man a chance. It was just who he was. Just that _bloody_ decent.

Of course he knew why Luke had been so desperate to stop Brixton. Luke had told him why himself. It had nothing to do with the virus or the world. Or even Hattie, though he knew Luke cared about her. It was because of their history. Luke saw him as competition, even though there would _never_ be such a thing between them. Because Luke had already won. In every possible way.

Deckard had been alone, in the mating sense. And there was one thing he hadn’t told Hattie in regards to that. Ever since Russia. Ever since spending that heat with Luke, he hadn’t experienced another one. When the day came and went with no symptoms, Deckard had been seriously concerned. Without suppressants, he had never missed a single heat in his life, since presenting. He had visited a specialist the following day. And her explanation _did_ make sense, though Deckard hadn’t liked it at the time.

Because his body had been shown the power of a perfect connection with an Alpha, it refused to go into heat unless it were certain said Alpha would be there for it. Deckard hadn’t experienced a single heat in over eighteen months. All thanks to Luke Hobbs. The perfect Alpha for him. The Alpha he had told himself he couldn’t have at the time. What had really concerned him was that, in those months they spent apart in between missions, Deckard had realized he’d probably never get to experience a connection like that ever again. If not with Hobbs. With Luke. The idea had scared him shitless.

Then Bulgaria happened. Then Brixton showed up. It was all so confusing. And yet, through it all, one thing had remained certain. Luke wanted him. Maybe that was why he had felt like he had all the time in the world. Because Luke looked at him like a blind man seeing the sun for the first time and it did _things_ to Deckard. But he felt time ticking him by and he knew he needed to get his shit together. 

“At first I was scared to admit I felt something for him because we work together. And look at what happened the last time I crossed that line, Hats” Deckard sighed. Though nothing would ever compare the way things had turned out with Brixton to the way things were with Luke today, the similarities had been enough to scare him into stillness. If it weren’t for Brixton, maybe Deckard might have already told him the truth “We’ve managed, but I guess I was never ready to lose what we have just to see _if_ we could make it into something more. If I act on these feelings, what’s going to stop us from losing our partnership? Besides, he’s got Sam. He has _her_ to think about and I would never want to get in the way of his family”

"Don’t you think you, at least, owe him the benefit of the doubt? After everything?” Hattie sighed, collecting the bottles she had set at her feet “He’s a grown man, Deck, who can make his own decisions. You’re only going to make the both of you miserable by acting this way”

As per usual, Hattie Shaw was right. She kissed his forehead, making her way back to the house. He watched her go, slowly making progress now that they only had the moonlight to guide the way. And this was the way that could lead him to Luke Hobbs. Who was somewhere inside that house, working restlessly to keep his sister safe. 

Well, fuck it. 

Deckard got up and made his way inside following the path Hattie had left behind in the overgrown grass. Adrenaline thumped away at his ears and he ignored the look Luke’s brothers threw his way once he entered the garage. Jonah had earbuds in, working away at the machine for Hattie. While there were far too many of them for Deckard to remember them all by name after only a few hours, he nodded and followed the direction they had pointed him in.

He found Luke in what seemed to be his old room. Mamma Hobbs had kept it exactly the way he had left it, she had said. And Deckard believed her. The bed by the far corner was way too small to hold a man of Luke’s current size. There were band posters on the walls as well. Luke was standing in the room, with what seemed to be a handful of developed pictures in hand. Deckard had a hard time naming the look on his face. It was a mixture of homesickness, sorrow and pain. Not a great combination.

Upon noticing Deckard resting against the threshold, he put the pictures on the nightstand. With a sigh and a tired smile, he turned his full attention to Deckard. Luke looked tired and Deckard knew it was because he hadn’t slept at all on the flight over. Then the confrontation with his siblings probably hadn’t helped. All on top of being around Deckard. The Omega he wanted for himself. Deckard swallowed past the lump in his throat.

Well, it was now or never.

“How’s Hattie holding up?” Luke whispered in the small space of the room. Said room, which Deckard would love to explore, if he ever had the time for it. This had been the room Luke had presented in, had gone through all of those changes. He wanted to know that Luke just as well as he knew the one standing in front of him right there.

“She’s a Shaw, Hulk” Luke chuckled. Hell, even his laugh sounded tired. Deckard resisted the urge to reach out and will away the knots in his muscles and the wariness in his eyes “How do you think she’s doing?”

“Well, that’s reassuring, at least” Luke was an experienced fighter and had always dealt with having people’s lives depending on his commands and choices. Deckard couldn’t possibly imagine that kind of pressure. Sure, being Captain meant he had his fair share of responsibilities, but this was different. It was something else entirely. Deckard could never imagine having to face these responsibilities every single day.

“Yeah, well. She’s holding it together far better than me” Deckard stepped closer, an action Luke didn’t miss. Immediately, his entire body turned to Deckard and he balled his fists. Luke wanted to reach out. It was the most basic instinct for an Alpha, to have physical contact. Deckard told himself that, if this conversation went the way he wanted it to, they wouldn’t have to resist the urge much longer “She’s far stronger than any of us. The fact that she’s willing to lay down her own life to keep the world safe… I don’t know if I could ever do that”

“You know I won’t let it come to that choice” Luke stepped closer still, their chests a few feet apart. Deckard had to look up a bit, but it didn’t bother him. If anything, this whole height difference thing turned him on, big time. And he knew Luke liked it just as much “Not today. Not ever”

Deckard smiled. He couldn’t keep it in anymore. Luke’s eyebrow arched, in that way only he could pull off, but a smile found its way to his lips still. In the back of his mind, he wondered if Sam had the same talent. Or if their cub would inherit that particular ability. Deckard was willing to find out.

“That brings us to the question I wanted to ask you, big guy” Luke nodded, the smile finally reaching his eyes. Despite the exhaustion and the fight still to come, Luke was willing to stand there and humor him. Deckard knew that, if they made it out of this mess in one piece, he’d spent forever making sure Luke knew just how much he appreciated him. Deckard took a deep breath and looked him dead in the eyes “Is Bulgaria still standing?”

Odd phrase, Deckard knew. But he also knew Luke would understand. The stakes were too high for him not to. Surprise traveled through him, settling on his face. Luke’s mouth opened and closed for a moment, stunned, for sure. Then he closed his eyes, nostrils flaring for a quick second before he managed to control himself once more.

“Can’t imagine the day it won’t be, princess” Luke whispered, with a serious tone to his voice. And it was all Deckard needed to hear. Deckard closed the remaining distance between them and stood on his tiptoes, bringing Luke down into him. Deckard heard him gasp in surprise and all he did was swallow the moan Luke gave him. 

Luke’s hands found his waist not a moment later. Arms circled his back and pulled him that much closer. There was something about Luke’s mouth that made Deckard’s knees buckle. Gladly, Luke was strong enough to hold both of their weights. Luke’s hand climbed to the back of his neck, squeezing quite harshly and Deckard moaned, squeezing the man in return. By the time they pulled away, Deckard could see the perfect mixture of desire and confusion, right alongside his own reflexion in those dark eyes.

“I’m glad to hear it” Deckard whispered against Luke’s mouth, not willing to step back just yet. Luke didn’t seem to mind, given how his arms had remained as secure around him as when the kiss started “I promise we’ll talk once this mess is over. Brixton is all yours, by the way”

Luke smiled, mischievous and breathtaking, all at once.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Find me on social media:
> 
> Twitter: @SofiaVolkerling // Tumblr: faded-green-of-bruises
> 
> XoXo


	9. A Few Heated Calls

As soon as they had made their way back to the compound, Hattie leading the way, Deckard had noticed that their fight had been far from over. Though they had safely removed the virus from Hattie and gotten rid of Brixton, there were still plenty of Eteon men left for them to handle. Deckard wanted to tell himself there were enough Hobbs family members to deal with the situation. But Luke would never leave his family to fend for themselves.

Luke had had his arm around his back, smiling tiredly but happily down at him. Oh, Deckard had wanted to kiss him right there. He could have done with a nice shower, some dry clothes and approximately fifteen hours of sleep, but at the very moment, all he had wanted was to kiss Luke. But Deckard never got the chance to.

Luke had run off to help his brothers and cousins and Deckard had decided to make himself useful as well. Hattie had found a safe place to hide the virus, at least until they could safely contact the CIA and explain themselves to them. So, for the time being, Deckard would enjoy one of the simplest pleasures his life had to offer: kicking someone’s ass in combat. No killing, just slowing them down enough to get them nicely tied up.

They had rounded up at least two dozen men who were all in various degrees of consciousness and Deckard had been making his way towards the last one who had gotten away when he heard the sound of a half-full machine gun clip emptying itself. It was a sound Deckard knew well. And yet it made all of his insides turn to ice. Then melt away a moment later.

Please. 

No. 

No, no, no. 

Please, don’t let it be _him_. 

Deckard heard screaming not a second after he regained control over himself. The man he had been chasing had gotten away, but Deckard couldn’t bring himself to care. All he could focus on was Jonah, with his hands in his head, screaming in shock. Mamma Hobbs in tears, being supported by one of her sons. There was fire everywhere. And Hattie, with her hands wrist deep in blood, as pale as a sheet of paper. 

And Luke. On the ground. Deckard took off running before he truly understood the seriousness of the situation. He slid the last remaining feet of dirt that separated him from Luke, Hattie looking up at him. She had been barking orders at Luke’s brothers and cousins, but none of them seemed to be in their right mind enough to stop and listen. All they did was run around and yell at each other, like a bloody hoard of headless chicken.

Luke’s eyes were closed and no amount of begging on Deckard’s part got him to open them. Deckard’s brain went into overdrive as he let his training take over. He’d done this plenty of times before. He pushed his fear back down, along with an array of other feelings. He knelt beside Hattie, who had been doing her best to stop the bleeding. But there was just so much she could do.

Deckard counted five gunshot wounds. Two in his left shoulder, one right at the sternum and two in his abdomen. Deckard closed his eyes for a moment, if only to push away the panic rising in his throat and removed his jacket. He folded the fabric as many times as it would go and handed it to Hattie. He knew it was useless to try and reason with Luke’s family at that point. Their instincts were still on an all time high from the fight and now, the Alphas in them were in charge. 

Luke was their baby brother and seeing him like that couldn’t be easy. Deckard _got_ it. He told himself Luke would be fine. He was the toughest son of a bitch Deckard knew. This was nothing but a temporary set back to their plans. They would still get there. Eventually. And Deckard would be there, every step of the way. Which was why he stood up. He didn’t have time for his Omega to take control. 

He grabbed Hattie’s arms and guided her hands to the right places, using his jacket to try and slow down the bleeding in as many places as possible. The cut on Luke’s eyebrow would have to wait for now. As would the several ribs he knew for a fact Luke had broken during the chopper fall. None of it mattered. All he could do was keep moving. And find a way out.

“Press down hard, Hats. Use all of your body if you have to!” Deckard patted Luke’s pockets, hoping that if he had had his phone on him that it had survived the fall and the water. But his pockets had been empty “I gotta call for back up! Stay with him!”

Deckard ran towards Luke’s room. He ignored the pain on his elbow from the blow he had landed onto Brixton’s jawline. It didn’t feel broken, but it throbbed and made his hand shake weakly. He pushed the door open with his shoulder, not wasting any time as he reached for Luke’s bag. He knelt on the ground and started clearing each pocket. But it had been nowhere to be found.

He growled in frustration, closing his eyes and thinking. Where had he last seen it? Think. Think. Think! His jacket! Deckard looked everywhere for it, but it wasn’t inside his room. He shoved one of Luke’s cousins out of the way as he entered the kitchen, finding it as if by miracle. The bloody thing was just hanging there, from the back of a chair. 

Deckard chuckled through the panic rising in his chest. Password. Okay. Okay. Breathe. It’s gotta be Sam’s birthday, right? Of course. That little _fucker._ With quick thumbs, Deckard typed in the digits and Luke’s phone unlocked itself in his hands. Without letting a single other thought cross his mind, Deckard immediately dialed for Mr. Nobody. 

* * *

The helicopter had arrived not five minutes later. How Mr. Nobody did _this_ , all of it, Deckard would never understand. He told himself he didn’t have to understand. Deckard had simply whispered to his mother that they were friends from work and were there to take Luke somewhere safe. Where he could be treated in a hospital facility prepared to handle something like this. 

Hattie had stood there, hand in his as they worked on Luke. It was hard for him to let total strangers touch his Alpha in a moment of such fragility, but he held himself back for his sake. Some of his brothers had tried to growl and rebel, but one word from their mother had silenced them completely. Deckard had simply turned to kiss Hattie’s forehead, holding her for a moment. She had been shivering, he would come to realize only much later. She had promised to handle everything with the CIA, simply nudging him to enter the helicopter. 

Deckard held Luke’s hand tightly. Every inch of him trembled in fear, but he refused to show it. Not because Luke could see him, but for himself. There was nothing else he could do at that point, but hold his hand and pray. Deckard wasn’t the religious type, far from it. But he begged for Luke’s life, right there. He had no idea where they were headed, he just knew he wouldn’t leave until he got to see those eyes again. The words he had been wanting to say were stuck halfway up his throat.

The helicopter landed after an incredibly long forty-five minutes in the air. A military base, of course. Deckard should have known. Nobody must have done quick work of explaining the situation, because sure enough, there had been an entire team on standby to take Luke into surgery. And Deckard sat there, blood up to his elbows, shivering in fear, cold and hunger. Exhaustion too. 

He must have dozed off at one point, because he woke up to a makeshift pillow under his head and a blanket covering him. A civilian hospital would have raised too many suspicions and he had to guess they were still wanted criminals. It would take a while for the truth to run free. And though Deckard was still resting against the wall, someone had clearly maneuvered him into a better position. He cracked his neck, looking for a clock. The one he wore had long since broken during the fight and Luke’s cellphone had stayed back on the island, in Hattie’s hand. 

Deckard had to guess they were still in Polinesia, given the people who would occasionally walk past corridors in his line of sight. Forty five minutes of overflying open ocean didn’t leave them with many options. The place was _bloody_ humid too. _Fucking_ tropical heat. He stood up, with the intention of finding someone who could tell him what the frack was going on, only to find himself losing his balance, black spots crowding his vision.

“Careful, there. Here, sit down. Sit. Lemme have a look at you” Deckard snorted in annoyance out of pure habit. And sniffed too. A Beta. Good. Betas were good. He looked up, through the sudden haze to his eyes, to find a woman. A nurse. Also great. Just the person he had been looking for “You must be starving. And certainly dehydrated to almost faint like that. When was the last time you ate?”

“Miss, that’s the least of my worries right now. Where is he? Where’s Hobbs?” Deckard had to imagine he didn’t look very intimidating sitting down, fighting the whole fainting thing while she stood over him with her hands on her hips, but his voice must have gotten the point across. She sighed, taking a few steps towards a desk he hadn’t even noticed had been there until that moment, before returning to him “Is he…”

“Still in surgery? Yes. Will be for at least another hour or so” She inspected the papers in her hands and Deckard soon understood they were Luke’s _medical files_. At least from the very moment he had been admitted to this particular clinic. Oh, if he could only get his hands on those… “The last entry here says three of the bullets have already been recovered and one went through without causing much damage. The one on his sternum should be done with soon enough. There. I’m guessing that’s what you wanted to know. Now, you. When was the last time you ate?”

Deckard let the woman lead him to an examination room, where she made him remove whatever was left of his shirt. She promised him a change of clothes, maybe even a shower, so he felt compelled to let her pick and poke him however she saw necessary. See? He could behave when the situation called for it. Soon enough, she had given her verdict. A broken rib, a dislocated shoulder, a twisted elbow and enough cuts to give the residents at the base plenty of practice with stitching to last them their entire careers. Peachy.

Deckard found himself showered, medicated, clean and fed by the time they announced Luke was out of surgery. It would take some time before he was stable enough to be flown anywhere, but the prognosis was good. Deckard would even be allowed to see him as soon as they transferred him to a room in the medical bay. Deckard had never known relief quite like that. Sure, he’d had plenty of close calls in his day, but this was different.

Deckard downed the rest of his coffee, which was pretty shitty, but what could he do about it, and asked for a phone. He sat down for some much needed peace and quiet and dialed Luke’s old phone number. Before the first ring had finished going through, Jonah had answered. There had been a string of incoherent screaming coming from him and Deckard pulled the phone away from his ear before losing his hearing permanently. The phone fell from said hand, he had to guess by the loud bang noise that followed. Then Hattie came on.

“Deck?! Deck, is that you?! Hello?” Hearing her voice gave him solace like nothing else could. He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. Only to hiss at the cut he had just squeezed. His nurse would not be happy if he popped a stitch there “How’s Luke?”

“Hey, it’s me. I’m going to get to see him soon. He pulled through the surgery” Deckard took a deep breath and couldn’t help but smile at the cheering he heard coming from the other side of the line when Hattie passed the information along. He heard loads of screaming, still pretty incoherent, though far from the kind he had endured not moments before “They managed to extract all the bullets and now all we have to do is wait for him to be stable before we can fly him back to the States. He won’t be traveling much for a while after that and I’m sure he’ll want to be with Sam. Tell them they’ll have to come visit him, will you? I gotta go. Love you, Hats”

* * *

Deckard felt like he was going to pass out. Seeing Luke on that bed had been terrifying to him, had made his insides churn in despair. His entire torso was tightly wrapped in endless layers of bandages, his shoulder in a sling. But the real worst part was how the doctors had refused to speak with him about what kind of recovery process Luke would be facing. Because they weren’t bonded and Luke wasn’t _technically_ his Alpha. 

And though Deckard _technically_ outranked most of the men in the room, he knew they would just brush any threats from him aside, because he ‘wasn’t in his right mind’. The defenseless Omega. It made him grit his teeth in a surge of rage that left him panting as he walked back to the phone. They were about to have something else coming. 

Deckard had been begging for any excuse to get himself into a fight, but his body didn’t respond the way he needed it to. He felt himself on the brink of exhaustion, though he was medicated and clean. All the adrenaline from the fight, which now seemed to have been a lifetime ago, had left him when he most needed it. His body was begging for a breather and Deckard knew it was in his best interest to listen to that cry for help. He could still yell like a motherfucker, though. Also, his future mother-in-law might be mad at him for not taking care of her baby boy, so… priorities, right?

After a few heated calls with Nobody’s office, the doctors reluctantly told him everything that Deckard needed to know: how the surgery had gone, the extent of his injuries and what the next steps needed to be. Luke would be kept under until his heart and breathing remained steady for the next twelve hours. Only then would he be cleared for traveling. 

Deckard knew twelve hours was pushing it. Most people wouldn’t be moved for days due to a single gunshot, but he couldn’t help but be pleased to know his suffering was half a day away from ending. Luke wouldn’t fit the ‘most people’ group on his worst day. He had to guess Nobody had, once more, interfered on Luke's behalf. Deckard sat on the chair by Luke’s bed, ignoring the doctors and nurses who constantly came in to check on him. If anything, at least he was being well looked after. Deckard could look past anything else.

Soon enough, his eyelids grew heavy and Deckard found himself struggling to keep his eyes open. Deckard sighed, yawning as he scooted closer to the bed. He huffed when their hands met. Luke’s hand was cold. To think that living furnace could be cold made dread rip right through him. Deckard didn’t think he’d ever be warm if…

Deckard didn’t finish that thought. Instead, he sighed, squeezing the large hand he held and letting his head rest against the back of the very uncomfortable plastic chair. If Deckard were being honest, he’d probably be able to sleep while standing, so anything other than that was an improvement. 

* * *

Deckard had only felt like he could sleep several minutes after arriving at the hospital and yet sleep evaded him now that he could rest. The flight had been long and hard, but they had made it. Deckard settled for a cup of lukewarm tea and some crackers from the hospital cafeteria, once he was assured Luke was stable and settled in. Luke wouldn’t be waking up any time soon, so he allowed himself a moment to think. He had to call Hattie, make sure everybody back on Samoa knew they had arrived without any major hiccups.

He also thought of Sam. Deckard wouldn’t have liked to have his cub know he was gravely injured, but he couldn’t help but feel like the little one had the right to know. If anything, it would do Luke a world of good to see her there when he woke up. The thought of doing something that would make him happy made some of the tension leave Deckard’s muscles.

He felt tired. Exhausted, even. He had slept for almost twelve hours, in between sitting on that horrible chair and the flight over to the States. Mr. Nobody had asked him if he wanted to be dropped off in London but, if he noticed how high Deckard’s voice had gotten when he screamed that no, he didn’t, he chose not to say anything. It was probably better that way.

Then Deckard told himself everyone probably already knew. They really were that obvious, he told himself. Which was why he had allowed himself to hold Luke’s hand as soon as they had arrived at the hospital. He wanted _everyone_ to know Luke Hobbs was spoken for. Maybe his bite didn’t adorn Deckard’s neck quite yet, but it was just a matter of time.

He cracked the muscles in his neck for what felt like the hundredth time and paced the room in a few strides. After a few hours of not knowing what to do with himself, Deckard took a quick trip to the waiting room. He had hoped to find something decent to read, that day’s newspaper would be lovely. He even considered ditching his usual cuppa and going straight for the brewed coffee sold by the bucket back at the cafeteria. But before he could make a decision, he stopped mid stride.

Because he heard the sound of little feet rushing towards the waiting room. And Deckard turned around when he recognized the scent. Oh, it was mini-Hobbs, alright. He recognized Sam immediately. Not only thanks to the pictures Luke had shown him, but because she was the absolute spitting image of her father. She had fat tears in her brown eyes, lip trembling. And she looked directly at him. She took another step in his direction, hand bringing the string of her hoodie up to her mouth.

The last thing he had expected out of that encounter was for Sam to recognize him.

“Deck?” Her voice cracked on the short pronunciation of his name and he couldn’t help but open his arms. Everything about her pulled him in and Deckard knew, somewhere in the back of his mind, that he was reacting like that because she was his Alpha’s cub. He would, indeed, protect Sam with his life and seeing her in such distress only added to his own. 

Sam could barely hit his chest, her arms wrapped tight around his waist. She buried her nose into his chest and inhaled deeply, making Deckard close his eyes. He ran his hands through her mane of curls, bending himself a little to better hug her. She sobbed, squeezing him tight. He had to guess she knew, then. Knew about her father being so injured. It only made him want to comfort her further.

With every sob that wracked her body, Deckard hugged her closer. All he could do was sit with her, her body safely tucked against his. A woman appeared a few moments later, clearly relieved to find Sam. Though the relief was momentarily substituted by fear, until she seemed to understand the situation. Exactly how much had Luke told others about him? Because he had to guess that was how Sam had recognized him. Luke must have told her. Deckard closed his eyes at the heat climbing his neck.

“It’s okay, pumpkin” Deckard kept a steady hand on her back, willing her to calm down. It had always worked with Hattie and he was happy to know he still got it. Soon enough, Sam’s breathing became more even, as she regained control over herself. She looked up at him with those gorgeous brown eyes and he couldn’t help but smile “The doctors said your father’s going to be just fine. It’s going to take some time and some work, but he’s going to be okay”

“You smell like him” She spoke softly, wiping her nose on the back of her hand. Well, if Luke hadn’t told her _everything_ , there was no way he could wiggle himself out of it this time. Deckard looked at his feet for a moment, not certain as to what would be acceptable for him to say. Though Luke had been more than clear on what he wanted them to be, it was something else entirely finding the right words to break it down to his cub.

“You’re the second person to tell me that” Deckard couldn’t help but think Sam and Hattie would be great friends. The thought somewhat scared him, which would probably give Luke a heart attack. Oh, the two of them together could rule the world. Add his mother to the party and it would be the end of days. 

“Does that mean you finally bonded with my dad?” Sam deadpanned the words to him in a way that had Deckard choking on his own saliva. Jeez! A bit of warning next time, Luke! Sam looked up at him with expectant eyes and he got all the confirmation he needed that yes, in fact, Luke had spoken with her about him. He couldn’t help but let his sleep deprived brain take some time catching up to her.

“What?” Deckard had half expected her to roll her eyes at him, but reminded himself that was a Shaw habit. She merely looked exasperated, urging him to tell her the truth. He had kind of expected a sit down talk with Sam, but only _after_ talking things through with Luke. When it came to her, he would never make any demands. Luke knew what was best, so Deckard felt at a loss for what to say or do.

“I know about you two. He told me. Dad told me he likes you. But he also said that it was complicated because you two work together. He… he never told you he spoke with me, did he?” Deckard’s surprise must have been written all over his face, because she sighed, wiping her tears away and looking somewhat annoyed at her father “He said he liked you very much, but was afraid to tell you. I think it’s because of me. He is always trying to protect me. I guess that’s why he’s never dated anyone. He is afraid to let someone into our family. Do you like him?”

Well, at least now Deckard knew somewhat the extension of their talk. Of course, Luke wouldn’t have told her everything, but at least he had an idea of where to go with that conversation. Deckard sighed, feeling his mouth open and close, but no words ever came out. Eventually, he sighed again. Deckard had spent the entire helicopter ride in desperation. That was it. Then the flight to Los Angeles hadn’t done much to appease his already pretty shaken up self. 

He had been desperate for a chance to see Luke’s eyes again. To hold his hand and have him squeeze it back. Deckard wanted to tell him how he felt. Though he was sure Luke knew Deckard was willing to give them a chance, Deckard hadn’t had the time to truly express himself. He should have. Back in Luke’s room. He should have laid his cards on the table right then and there. But there was no point in thinking about that now.

Knowing that Luke had spoken to his daughter about him made him feel… happy. Like Luke had spoken about his desires for Deckard to become her family and knowing Luke wanted their worlds to merge only added to how much he wanted to be with him. 

“Of course I like him, Sam. How could I not? He’s always been a good friend, even when I told myself I didn’t want him to be and… to be honest with you, I don’t know when exactly it became more than that. But it did” Sam nodded, her eyes so hopeful as she ate up every word he said. It was clear she wanted her father to be happy and, looking down at her, Deckard couldn’t help but feel like she was entrusting that task to him “I was afraid too. Still am. But to think I could have lost him…”

Deckard tucked one of her curls behind her ear, only to smile when she leaned into the touch. She was clearly in need of reassurance and probably knew Deckard would give it to her. Truth be told, Deckard had never thought he could lose Luke. Calling him the Hulk was more than just a nickname. A pet name, at this point. Luke was strength, a constant. Coming to the realization that it all could have changed in the rough span of a day was a haunting thing. An eye opener.

“... I guess the idea of losing him scares me more than the thought of telling him how I feel. I want your father to be happy, Sam. And I guess I never thought it could be with me. I wouldn’t dream of getting in the way of your family, your life with him. Your father will always put you first and that’s one of the many things I like about him” Deckard sighed again, seeing Luke’s eyes right there. Through his cub. And he smiled, thumb and index finger softly holding her chin “Sam, if you’ll let me, I’d like to tell him all of this too. And who knows, maybe we’ll make this work. But _only_ if you’re okay with me and your father being together”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Find me on social media:
> 
> Twitter: @SofiaVolkerling // Tumblr: faded-green-of-bruises
> 
> XoXo


	10. Until They Could Make It Happen

For a long while, all Luke seemed to be able to focus on was the pain. He felt like his organs had been liquified, then sloppily injected back into their mismatched cavities. It was lovely. His head throbbed, and he felt needles pricking every inch of his skin. The sensation was valid, since he did open his eyes to find needles sticking out from his skin. But the more he seemed to focus, the more he realized the incidents were isolated. His shoulder had the worst of it, along with his stomach. Though that was probably just hunger.

He recognized the sterile scent of the hospital room he was in before everything else faded to the back of his mind. Because there was another scent far more important right there with him. It gave him the strength to fully open his eyes. Though he couldn’t see shit for a long moment, he did recognize that voice. That accent. It made him want to reach out, but he found he couldn’t move. All he _could_ do, for a long while, was listen. He heard the piercing sound of a phone ringing and told himself it was just the concussion, making everything sound heightened.

“Hey, pumpkin” Luke was so happy he swore he was going to cry. Everything came back to him, like a flood of memories and happiness and pain. He remembered the fight, Deck kissing him. Then he remembered the gunshots. _Right_. So that’s why he was at the hospital. He’d been shot. Multiple times. And alive, he seemed to be. Deck’s voice was what kept him afloat. He could still feel the remains of the drugs, like a cloud over his brain and was thankful to have something to focus on. “No, he’s not awake yet. The doctors discontinued all pain medication though, so it should be soon”

Luke blinked his eyes open to find Deck standing by the window, phone in hand. The sun was shining right on him, and he was squinting in order to see anything past it. But he didn’t seem to mind, given how he even lifted his chin to let himself soak some of it. Luke thought of Deck on the beach. A weird thought, but a welcomed one. Luke wanted to hold onto that image until they could make it happen.

He seemed tense, his shoulders set in a way Luke had seen before. Deck looked ready for a fight, feet set apart, hand balled into a fist. Deck was ready to ram someone’s head through the nearest wall and Luke was, now more than ever, happy to no longer be on the man’s bad side. But he knew he couldn’t hold it against Deck. He could only imagine what he had put him through, though unintentionally. He thought back to his family, then to Sam. Only to realize that was exactly who Deck was talking to.

“He’ll be very happy to see you, I’m sure. But me and him still have a lot to talk about, pumpkin” Luke felt the muscles of his face pull into a smile, though everything hurt. So they’d spoken. The idea didn’t scare him one bit, since Sam knew everything. And given how they were speaking, he had to imagine that conversation had gone over well “I’ll pick you up from Angela’s tonight and bring you over, okay? But I’ll make sure he knows you’re okay as soon as he wakes up”

“I don’t think there’s much for us to talk about, since my daughter already has you wrapped around her finger” Deck’s head turned to him so fast Luke half expected him to lose his balance and fall. But he didn’t. Deck’s face lit up, a smile so bright on his face it was more blinding than the sun pouring into the room. The Omega was standing by his side in the blink of an eye, his scent becoming more overpowering. No suppressants, then. _Hmm_. Luke liked it “Are you okay?”

Deck laughed, full on laughed. His hand immediately reached for Luke’s, who couldn’t help but smile at this new development. Under different circumstances, Deck might have found some snarky comeback for the comment, but he couldn’t bring himself to. He was just too happy. Besides, the comment _had_ been spot on, of course. Deck rested his free hand on the mattress beside Luke’s head, looking down at him with a smile that reached his eyes and made him look delighted to see him.

“You were shot multiple times, dickhead. Then pulled through a six hour surgery, no less” Deck couldn’t help but feel like none of it mattered anymore. Luke was awake, and talking. Both were very good signs. Luke’s hand had a death grip on his, which kept his smile large and bright. Happy too “Then flown halfway across the globe and you have the _balls_ to ask me if _I’m_ okay?”

Luke couldn’t help but chuckle, shrugging with his good shoulder. He knew, from the pain alone, that whatever had happened there had to have been serious. But he could still move all fingers on that hand, as well as feel them, so everything seemed to be in order, more or less. Everything else could wait.

“First of all, you _know_ I have the balls. Don’t you dare deny that” Deck laughed again, rolling his eyes for good measure. Luke couldn’t help but smile in kind. He could only imagine the sight that he was, all bruised and hurt, bandaged up and unmoving. But he didn’t really care at that moment “Second of all, you come first, princess. Always”

Deck was silent for a long while. His eyes searched Luke’s, for what exactly he didn’t know. But he seemed to find it, given how his smile only grew larger. Swiftly, almost gingerly, Deck bent over and planted a kiss to the corner of Luke’s mouth. Luke moaned, wanting more, but Deck only laughed, pulling away. He shook his head, softly.

“No, tosser. Sam comes first. And I promised the little Hobbs I’d bring her over as soon as the doctors examined you” Luke groaned again, but Deck didn’t move away. He simply reached for the nurse button. Luke heard a sound, a beeping one and only then noticed it was his heart monitor. Jeez, a concussion could really dull your senses. Or maybe it was Deck’s scent. That sounded far more likely to his own mind. He made a mental note to ask Deck why the change of heart when it came to the suppressants “And yes, I am well aware you have the balls. I wouldn’t be willing to be claimed by you if you didn’t”

Luke closed his eyes, groaning at the mental picture his mind conjured. Deck only laughed, letting himself be pulled back in for another kiss. A proper one this time. Their foreheads touched for a moment and Luke inhaled deeply. Deck left another kiss to his mouth before pulling away. The nurse walked into the room a second later, followed by a doctor. Shit. Luke hadn’t even heard them nearing, let alone smelled them. He had no idea Deck could be that overpowering, even outside of a heat. Luke squeezed his hand before Deck could move away.

“I’m not going anywhere, Hulk. Just letting them do their jobs” Deck smiled, a reassuring smile Luke appreciated immensely. And, as promised, he stood by as the nurse and doctor spoke with him about everything that had happened. Honestly, Luke had gone through worse. Much worse. But the situation hadn’t helped. He had been strained and exhausted and that had taken its toll on him, aggravating the wounds that much more.

By the time the doctor left the room, with the nurse checking each of his bandages, Luke was already feeling drowsy again. He fought to keep his eyes open and smiled when they were finally left alone in the room. The sun was almost setting, in Los Angeles. He had been surprised to find himself there, though Deck had mentioned something about traveling half the world. It made sense. Deck smiled at his heavy eyelids and Luke couldn’t remember the last time he had seen the man smile so much. He wanted to keep it that way. 

“I’m gonna go pick Sam up and bring her here, okay? Try to stay out of trouble, please” Luke couldn’t do much more than give him a smirk, already falling half asleep. Deck kissed his cheek and Luke squeezed his hand one more time, eyes finally giving in.

“Well, since you asked so nicely”

* * *

Luke had everything, right there. He had chinese food in hand, with Sam and Deck laughing at his expense. It was wonderful. Sam had been telling Deck about all the times he had been hit on by the other mothers from her soccer team and Deck had been smiling nonstop for the past half an hour. Luke had been too busy wolfing down his food, which Deck had expertly doubled the amount of when placing their order.

Sam had clearly picked the spot, knowing all of her dad’s favorite places. Luke had expected some degree of awkwardness, but there had been none. Sam had hugged him, happy to see him doing so well already, then moved on to picking her orange chicken and digging in. He really appreciated her ability to understand that this was his job. Luke hadn’t done this on purpose, obviously.

At one point, when Deck was taking their trash out of the room, Luke took her hand and squeezed it. She was so much like him, it scared him sometimes. Sam smiled up at him, bright and beamed at Deck when he returned. She seemed right at home with the man and that made Luke relax to the point he felt like he could sleep again. But he still had so much to discuss with Deck, he couldn’t quite bring himself to doze off yet.

Sam yawned, but refused to let go of her father’s hand. Deck smiled at the sight. It was obvious they were very close and Deck, for a second, thought he wasn’t worthy of something so special. Then Luke had reached for his hand with his free one and all of those doubts disappeared. He felt Sam’s eyes on him, but it didn’t stop him from smiling at the man. Jeez, where had all of those smiles come from? He had always known Luke could get a few out of him every once in a while, but he couldn’t help and be happy. He was perfectly happy, right there.

“Okay, young lady. It’s time for you to go home” Luke spoke when Sam yawned a third time. Sam immediately stood and opened her mouth to complain, but one look from her father had her sitting back down. She sniffled, as if she were ready to cry at the idea of leaving him “Baby, daddy’s gonna be fine. Do you really think this is gonna keep me down for long? Besides, you have school tomorrow. You need to have a good night’s sleep”

“How about I pick you up from school tomorrow and bring you straight here?” Deck suggested and Sam seemed to relax at the idea. Luke had been right to assume she’d present as an Alpha. Her protectiveness had flared up in under a second and she only relaxed when assured she’d get to see her dad again. Luke had smiled at him and that had settled it “Sleep, big guy. I’ll be back soon”

“Hey, come here” Luke had reached for his wrist and had urged him to get closer. Luke cursed the good food and the drugs he was on, because he felt himself slurring. Damn concussion, damn hospital. At this rate, he’d only get to talk to talk with Deck when he was discharged “Why don’t you go home? Our home, I mean” Luke smiled at the words and squeezed Deck’s hand. Deck couldn’t help but blush at the meaning behind them “You need to sleep too, princess. You’ve taken perfect care of me. Now it’s time you look after yourself a little. Sam can settle you in, right, baby?”

“Yes! Of course, daddy! Please, Deck!” Deck smiled at her excitement, but Luke knew he was still hesitating. It probably made all of his instincts flare up, to leave Luke. But Deck seemed to be so tired, bone tired even and Luke couldn’t stand that anymore.

“Talking can wait” Deck huffed, because of course. Of course Luke could see right through him. Nothing had stopped him from doing so before, it wouldn’t be any different now. Deck had to admit a proper shower and some sleep sounded wonderful. His time zones were still a mess and jetlag had settled in hours before. But still, leaving sounded perilous and, quite frankly, the worst idea ever “Or are you planning on ditching me, princess?”

“Never” Deck chuckled, happy to resume their position from earlier that day and rest his hand next to Luke’s head. Though Luke had been moved into a sitting position, Deck still had to bend a little to be close to him. And Luke smiled, happy to rest his head back and let Deck get as close as he wanted “Are you planning on running for the hills, She-Hulk?”

“Wouldn’t dream of it” Luke’s hand let go of his, only to reach for Deck’s neck next. Deck’s scent peaked momentarily at the touch, biting his lip to keep from moaning. Luke smirked at him, pulling him down. They said their goodbyes and Luke settled in for some much needed sleep, knowing his cub was in good hands and that his Omega would be back as soon as he opened his eyes.

* * *

As it turned out, Deck _hadn’t_ been there as soon as Luke had opened his eyes. But that was because Luke woke up at five in the freaking morning. Seriously, who does that? He had hoped Deck would still be fast asleep, at least. Instead of sleeping some more, which he found he couldn’t, the nurse helped him clean up a bit, which was nice. She even turned on the tv for him, though there wasn’t much to see at that hour. 

At around eight, his breakfast was served. After some persuasion, the nurses allowed him a trip to the bathroom. Luke knew he shouldn’t be walking, but if anything it made him a little more normal. And there he was, when Luke walked out. Deck had a bag on the bed, hands in the pockets of his trousers. He looked much better, which made their distance the night before much more bearable to Luke. 

“Sam’s at school and we didn’t burn down the house this morning” Deck spoke, turning to take Luke in. Luke knew the sight wasn’t as pretty as it could have been. The bandages had been changed, but he still hadn’t properly showered. Though it had to be better to see him standing and moving about, his left shoulder was still safely strapped to a sling. Let’s just say he hoped this wasn’t how Deck remembered him when he closed his eyes. Deck stepped closer still, eyes climbing his chest all the way up to his own “So, you know. Progress”

“I had absolute faith in you” Deck smirked up at him and Luke was more than happy to bend forward and plant a kiss to that smart mouth. Who would have thought they’d get here, huh? Deck sighed, eyes moving back down to his bandages. Luke understood this wasn’t easy, but he also knew there was no point in focusing on it now. Luke would get better, soon enough “My eyes are up here, princess”

Deck chuckled, closing his eyes. Well, he didn’t roll them, so Luke counted that as progress. Though he had never minded finding a bit of fight in Deck. If anything, it only added to how much he wanted the man, in every aspect of the word. Then something grabbed his attention. Deck’s scent was… different. Strong, still. But muskier. Not at all as sweet as Luke knew it could be. He must have frowned, because Deck smirked, stepping further still.

“I slept on your bed” Luke arched his eyebrows, but smiled. Now, come to think of it, he did recognize the scent. It was his own. He wrote off his confusion thanks to the drugs and the amount of stress his body had been under. Deck seemed to understand, simply kissing him once more before stepping away “I went shopping this morning, after dropping Sam off. Clothes, shoes and groceries. Needless to say Sam’s classmates were surprised to see her come out of a McLaren, by the way. What? You didn’t think I’d drive that truck of yours. I have standards”

Luke could only laugh. He should have known the least Deck would do was drop her off in style. Though Sam wasn’t a big fan of cars, he could only imagine her jaw dropping. She had read plenty of the Car & Driver magazines Luke left thrown about the house and knew the difference between a Ferrari and a Lamborghini, but that was as far as her knowledge of cars went. 

“Well, apparently, my daughter thinks you’re the greatest thing since sliced bread, so I think I gotta let that slide” Deck huffed, focusing on getting the clothes he’d packed from Luke’s closet out of the overnight bag and placing them on the bed. Luke couldn’t really do much with only one functioning arm, so Deck took it upon himself to help him dress. It’s not like he’d let any of those nurses get their hands on his Alpha, anyway. Not any more than they already had to “Just try not to spoil her rotten”

“I always thought Sam had inherited all the brains in this family” Luke couldn’t agree more, in fact “But considering I treated her to doughnuts this morning, your point is moot” Luke would have been mad, hadn’t he been so thrilled to know Deck and Sam had spent some quality time together. He’d take what he could get. They both chuckled and Luke sat on the bed, thankful for the fresh clothes and for the hand Deck kept tight in his. Like a lifeline connecting the both of them.

Luke smiled and opened his legs further when Deck softly pushed them apart. The Omega took a step closer and Luke gladly went into the hug Deck had been ready for. His arm softly passed over his shoulders, mindful of his every injury. Luke’s good hand closed around the back of Deck’s thigh, touching the man in whatever way he could. Luke only pulled away when he heard Deck groaning. Deck had his head thrown back, staring up at the ceiling. His fingers had fisted the fabric of his t-shirt.

“I was so afraid, Luke” Luke’s frown immediately softened when he recognized the acrid smell of fear. On his Omega, to top it all of. It made Luke’s hand climb to his waist, squeezing him further against his own body. All the emotions Deck had been trying to keep at bay had come rushing back to the surface and he didn’t think he could postpone that conversation any more “That I wouldn’t see you again. Or that I wouldn’t be able to tell you how I felt”

Deck swallowed past the lump inside his throat and forced the words past his trembling lips. He wasn’t going to cry, he _wouldn’t_. He looked back down, into Luke’s eyes, only to find the man frowning, most likely from smelling his distress, knowing there wasn’t much he could do at that moment to make it go away but be there for him. 

“I want this, Luke. Damn it” Deck’s hands let go of his shirt, only to cup Luke’s face in between them. This wasn’t something he could say unless he knew he had all of Luke’s attention “I _want_ you. To be my Alpha. And my partner. I won’t settle for anything less. I don’t know, maybe… maybe we can accept less missions. I… I want to retire some day and, _jeez,_ have a family. With you. And Sam. Luke, I… Ever since the restaurant, since Russia…”

“I know” Luke’s hand continued to climb, past Deck’s waist and up his back. Deck’s eyes couldn’t seem to focus on only one point of his face, instead taking him in, as if on a mission of his own. A mission to commit Luke to memory “Me too. Ever since your heat, I can’t stop thinking about it” Deck’s eyes closed the second Luke’s hand travelled to his stomach. His flat stomach. Luke soon replaced his hand with his own mouth, planting kisses to the soft material of his t-shirt “If you’ll have me, Deck. I want you. I promise you, here and now, to claim you during your next heat. And to do my goddamn best to give you the family you deserve”

“Well, this is the part where you kiss me and seal the deal, big guy” Luke smiled, hand reaching for the back of Deck’s neck and pulling him down. Luke was well aware of the nurse who walked in on them, gasped and dropped the medical chart she had been carrying. But still he didn’t let Deck pull away. Instead, the Omega sighed, relaxing further into him.

“It’s gonna take more than being walked in on to get me away from you” Deck rolled his eyes, biting into his bottom lip to keep from moaning when Luke’s lips soon met his jawline. His warm tongue traced the bone, groaning softly at the feeling of his stubble against it “Yes, princess. To everything with you. As soon as I get out of here, that is”

“We have to make sure you get better soon, then” A different nurse walked into the room a few minutes later, smartly knocking beforehand this time around. His phone rang and Deck indicated it before making his way out the room. The doctor had arrived a minute later to check in on Luke’s stitches and Deck wanted the professionals to give their full attention to his Alpha. It was Hattie.

“Tell me you finally told him, _please!_ ” Leave it to his baby sister to go straight to the point. And if Deck hadn’t been feeling incredibly calm and satisfied with their little chat, he might actually have told her to fuck off. But he didn’t. Instead he simply rested against the wall just outside Luke’s room and let her roast the fuck out of him. And, of course, Deck didn’t have to say anything. She started laughing after a few seconds of silence, which had been enough of a confirmation in her eyes “Oh, finally! Mum is gonna freak out!”

“Please, don’t tell her. She should hear about Luke from me” Deck couldn’t help but laugh along with her. He knew she was happy for him and, truth be told, Deck hoped she’d get to have this one day. Though he doubted any man on this Earth would ever be worthy of his baby sister, he’d make an exception if she were truly happy “How are you? _Where_ are you, actually?”

“On my way home, as we speak. We are _officially_ off the most wanted list, big brother” Deck hummed his approval, resting his head back against the glass of the window right behind him. Luke would surely be glad to hear it “This Mr. Nobody of yours surely helped speed things up. The CIA wanted to have the virus in their possession before clearing our names, but he must have pulled some strings”

“Yeah, he’s pretty good at that. Speaking of which, where is that damned thing?” Deck vaguely remembered Hattie stashing it away before all hell had broken loose back on Samoa, but the vial had slipped out of his mind, until now “Tell me you got rid of it”

“Yes, I most certainly did. I’m done with deadly viruses, thank you very much. The vial is on its way to some blacksite, only God knows where. Don’t care really. Out of sight, out of mind” Hattie scoffed at her own joke, which was a good indicator of her good mood “So? What’s next for you, Decks?”

“Well, I don’t know, actually. I’m thinking I’ll have to go home for a few days. I don’t even have my wallet with me, Hats” Before Deck could finish his next sentence, Hattie had already interrupted him. It sounded like she were unlocking a door, the sound of keys hitting a marble counter telling him she had, indeed, arrived home.

“I can send you whatever you need. Clothes and whatnot” Deck had to admit that did sound like a good idea. The last thing he wanted was to leave Luke, not only because they had agreed to take things further, but because the man would need all the help he could get as soon as he was discharged “I know you want to tell mum yourself, but maybe you should stay with Hobbs. We both know being apart is only going to cause you pain. A grandchild will surely win you her forgiveness”

Deck choked on his own saliva hearing her evil cackling on the other side of the line.

* * *

The doctors had a hard time believing the speed with which Luke was recovering. Three whole weeks had already passed and, after his latest check in, he had been cleared for physical therapy. He had been discharged three days after arriving at the hospital and had dedicated his full attention into his recovery. He didn’t plan on wearing that damn sling a second longer than necessary. He had an Omega to claim, a cub to raise and a life to continue living. 

Luke woke up the day after his first physical therapy session feeling sore and like he had finally accomplished something since arriving home. Though dedicating time to building a routine between his partner and daughter was nothing to scoff at, he finally felt like they were moving forward. That, and waking up next to Deck every morning, of course.

Deck was already awake, his middle finger deftly tracing circles around the red scars the stitches had left on his chest and abdomen. The touch was so light it was hard to believe what those hands were capable of. Luke groaned, hand moving to circle around Deck’s waist. The man chuckled, snuggling closer still. 

Deck’s scent had been getting sweeter by the day. Though his heat had been marked on the calendar ever since Deck had moved in with them, seeing the signs of its rapid approach made his stomach churn in anticipation. He wasn’t nervous, per se. He had been wanting this since Russia. But he still felt the Alpha in him howl in appreciation for everything Deck was doing for him. Deck was trusting him, not only with his body, but with starting their family and all Luke wanted was to make him happy.

“Nobody called while you were asleep” Those words surely got Luke to wake up fully. Deck spoke the words with nonchalance, his finger moving further down as it circled his abs with a feather light touch. If Nobody had called, it was because he had wanted Deck to go on a mission. Luke was nowhere near being declared fit for duty and the idea of Deck going on his own made his arm circle his waist more tightly.

“Please, tell me you didn’t say yes to going on a mission without me” Any other day, and he knew Deck wouldn’t hesitate to punch him and make sure he knew just how much he didn’t appreciate those words coming from him in a varied array of torturous ways. But, this time around, he settled for rolling his eyes and letting his finger travel further down still. _Way_ past his belly button “I know you can handle yourself, princess, but please”

“Of course I didn’t say yes, wank stain” Deck chose to ignore how Luke gasped at feeling the tip of his finger travel right past the waistband of his underwear and trace the outline of his half hard cock. They hadn’t had time for themselves ever since Luke’s injury and he had to guess Deck had finally found inspiration in the doctors fully discharging him from further medical care “Even if I wanted to go, which I don’t, I couldn’t. Too close to my heat anyway”

“Don’t think I can be away from you right now” Deck smirked, gladly letting Luke hide his face against his neck. The mere thought that Luke’s bite would be adorning it in three day’s time made his scent grow sweeter, if the Alpha’s groan was anything to go by. Deck smiled, biting his lip at the feeling of Luke’s tongue tracing his Adam’s apple, sucking on it softly “Fuck, Deck…”

Deck’s hand had finally cupped his growing bulge, though he made no effort to eliminate the layer separating their skins. Luke groaned in frustration, only adding to Deck’s amusement. He had no interest in torturing Luke, but he had to admit it felt amazing to have the Alpha on the palm of his hand, quite literally. 

“There’s one thing I want you to promise me you’ll do during my heat, apart from claiming me, that is” Luke nodded, his hand cupping Deck’s ass and pulling it until their fronts touched. They both moaned and Luke’s mouth found his. Since there was no need for his hand anymore, Deck was more than happy to cup Luke’s cheek and bring him even closer. Deck stayed perfectly still, letting Luke chase his pleasure through him.

“Anything, princess” Luke panted against his mouth, only to move right back in for another kiss. Deck gave him time to do with his mouth as he pleased, feeling Luke’s hips lose their pace for a moment.

“I seem to remember you promised to rim me, but so far you haven’t proved you can deliver” Deck had to cover his mouth at the moan that escaped. Luke moved so fast he had barely noticed the man maneuvering him on the bed. Luke’s hands grabbed his wrists, keeping them pinned atop his head. Deck wasn’t one for being restrained in bed, but he trusted Luke. If there was one person Deck was willing to get his freak on with, that man was Luke Hobbs “I want you to rim me, Luke”

“Would you be inclined to give me a practice round, princess?” Luke’s mouth met his chest, teeth softly grazing his nipple. _Shit!_ Deck’s legs moved on instinct, circling Luke’s waist with lightning speed. Deck fucked up into the heat of Luke’s own erection, feeling how it continued to grow against his own hip bone “I’d love to see what that smart mouth has to say once I get mine on you”

“You and I both know that if you want to be my Alpha, you gotta do better than that, big guy” Though Luke had all of his weight keeping him pinned against the mattress, it did nothing to hold him in place when Deck decided to move. The bed was large enough that Deck could flip them over with no problems, sitting straddling Luke’s waist. The Alpha growled, but Luke gave no sign he wished to be anywhere but under Deck “But I might be inclined to show you exactly what my _smart mouth_ can do”

Finally, fucking _finally_ , Deck’s hand reached inside his underwear, tongue slipping past his lips to moisten them before using it to show Luke _exactly_ what he had meant by those words.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Find me on social media:
> 
> Twitter: @SofiaVolkerling // Tumblr: faded-green-of-bruises
> 
> XoXo


	11. Touched Him With Such Reverence

There were few things in life that could compare to waking up next to the man who was two days away from being his Omega. Luke looked forward to waking up once Deck’s heat was through and they finally belonged to one another completely. But, even after all this time, Deckard Shaw still managed to surprise him.

Luke had come downstairs to find Sam standing on Deck’s toes, the two of them twirling around the kitchen. Sam’s delighted laugh filled the room, with the smell of coffee brewing and pancakes almost burning. But the smile on her face was worth it. Deck hummed some tune, a waltz if Luke remembered correctly, as he led her in their dance. It did _things_ to Luke, alright?

Sam’s bag was already packed by the couch, since she was going to go stay at Angela’s for the next few days. Luke made a mental note to buy the woman some flowers, given how much help she had provided over the past few weeks. Maybe make her dinner. Sam smiled at the sight of her father, dizzy due to all the spinning. Luke gladly helped her up the bar stool, sitting next to her while Deck made his way back to try and salvage the pancakes.

“Morning, princess” Sam hid her smile behind her hand, winning a smile from her father. Deck wore a t-shirt and sweatpants, looking the most relaxed Luke had ever seen him. His scent had gravitated more towards vanilla, causing Luke’s mouth to water. And it had nothing to do with the pancakes, or eggs or even the mean cup of coffee the Brit could prepare.

“Morning, She-Hulk” Sam chuckled, happily pouring more syrup on top of her stack of pancakes. Though Luke had always appreciated their time at Jenny’s, with the staff being very friendly and the food being really good, there was nothing that could compare to waking up to _this_. Luke smiled down at his cub, tucking her curls behind her ear. She was already dressed and good to go for school “Eat your food, mini-Hobbs. We leave for school in fifteen. And you, big-Hobbs, you got physical therapy in thirty. You know the drill”

“Deck promised we’d have pizza for dinner tonight” Sam spoke through a mouthful of pancake, gladly doing as Deck said. Though there hadn’t been a single drop of command to this tone, she still acted as if there had been. Her dynamics with Deck had been so easy to understand, it made Luke feel so blessed to have the both of them in his life “Do you think we could have chocolate pizza for dessert?”

“You’re eating half a gallon of maple syrup and worrying about dessert, pumpkin?” Deck spoke before Luke could, making him huff. Took the words right out of his mouth. His tone was sweet, though. Caring and gentle. Things Luke had always tried to be with his daughter, but apparently came naturally to Deck “I got you, though. I’m going to show your father how we Brits do pizza. Now, let’s roll, pumpkin. Brush those pearly whites and meet me by the car in five?” Sam quickly nodded and made a run for the stairs.

“No running indoors, baby!” Luke called after her, unable to keep himself from smiling. This. This was everything he had always wanted. And, somehow, he knew Deck knew exactly what he was thinking. Deck’s hand cupped his cheek and pulled him in, his kiss a mixture of coffee and vanilla that made his mind spin in the most delicious of ways “You sure you can drive her? How do you feel?”

“A little needy, I’m not gonna lie” Luke snorted, taking another gulp of his coffee before allowing his lips to find Deck’s jaw. Deck focused on his breathing, placing his mug back on the counter before he dropped it. Luke’s mouth found his once more, a soft and breathy moan escaping the Omega “Not only because you’re claiming me tomorrow, but you’re the first person I’ve actually had a relationship with outside of spending my heat with. It’s… It’s doing things to me. But I’m okay. I am nothing if not a patient man”

“Well, that makes one of us, princess” Deck chuckled, downing the rest of his coffee and standing up. He left another kiss to Luke’s mouth and made his way upstairs as well. Luke merely stared at his pancakes for a moment. It felt so strange, to finally have everything he wanted. It scared and thrilled him in equal parts. But he smiled, seeing the blueberry eyes of his pancake, with its butter square nose and whipped cream smile. He doubted anything could take that happiness from him.

* * *

Deck found he had been dozing off while soaking in the bathtub. He had adapted surprisingly well to the California heat. After Samoa, he felt like he could handle anything. And with his heat less than twenty four hours away, Deck felt the weird need to pamper himself a little. He had been very happy to just _be_. He had never really had the opportunity to have a taste of settling down. And he had to admit, it felt pretty damn good. After thirty years of guns and multiple wounds and all hell in between, he was ready to slow the _fuck_ down.

Of course, Deck and Luke had discussed the topic at great length. Settling down, missions. They still had a couple more in them, they both agreed, so they had already let Nobody know that as soon as Luke was cleared fit for duty, they could be counted on. But not a day sooner. Deck’s hands settled on top of his flat stomach. In his line of work, he had found himself in need of the perfect physique. Apart from that, he had never cared about working out or having much of a meal plan.

And his body had already endured so much. So many of his past injuries could have taken this from him. His family. And Deck knew that the _second_ that test came back positive, he would never dedicate his body to anything else. He would be gentle with himself for once. He would never again put himself in the crossfire. Not only during those nine months, but for the rest of his life. He had meant what he had said in that restaurant. The thought of something happening to him, to leave his cub alone in the world… Deck would never be that kind of parent. He refused to be.

And Luke had agreed, that once they got pregnant, that was it. No more missions, no more injuries, no guns and knives, of any kind. Who knew what they would get up to in the meantime, but they had plenty of months to figure it out. Deck opened his eyes and begrudgingly gave up his daydream to find Luke sitting on the edge of the tub. 

“How do you feel?” Luke was dressed, Deck noticed. Oh, yeah. Groceries. Luke had said something about going grocery shopping. Maybe at the time he had felt like going. But, sitting there in that delicious heat, leaving was the last thing on his mind. Luke smiled, almost as if he knew exactly what he had been thinking “I was thinking about going to the grocery store, but I don’t trust you won’t fall asleep and drown in this tub”

“Hey, I’ll have you know I’m a fantastic swimmer, Hulk” Deck could barely keep his eyes open at this point, but smiled at the feeling of Luke’s hand curling around his calf. As usual, even through the warmth of the water, Luke’s hand radiated heat. And Deck hummed, wanting to feel that heat everywhere. The hand climbed until it met the inside of his thigh, squeezing softly, though there was nothing sexual about it. Luke liked physical contact and Deck was all for it “I’ll be fine. Do you have the list I made?”

“Right here in my pocket, princess” Deck only opened his eyes to the hand Luke slid to the back of his neck, suddenly having all of the Omega’s attention. Deck smiled, knowing Luke felt just as anxious and excited as he did. They were taking a huge step, for once being selfish and choosing each other. They were done pretending this wasn’t the one thing occupying their minds for months now “Ingredients for pizza night and all of your favorites, so this heat runs smoothly. I got you”

“I know you do,” Deck smiled, gladly letting Luke have his way with his mouth. He felt like mush, in the best way possible. Sitting there, Deck didn’t think he had ever felt that relaxed in his life. Or perfectly fine with knowing he was letting someone take care of him. He had been independent his entire life and he had thought he would have put up more of a fight. But he loved it. And so did Luke, clearly “Now, go. Provide for me, Alpha”

* * *

There was a different kind of silence between them the following morning. They had dropped Sam off at Angela’s the night before and had had the house to themselves since. All Luke had done was focus on him. Thanks to his large and quite skilled hands, Deck had had the best night of sleep of the last few decades. 

After arriving home and setting all the groceries aside in their correct spots, Deck had found himself being playfully shoved in the direction of the bed by the Alpha. The pillows smelled like Luke and, for a long moment, Deck had been far from that room. He had been hyper aware of Luke’s hands undressing him, softly kneading away at every single muscle. But his mind had been on a high and not even close to that stratosphere.

Deck had woken up two hours later, from the best nap of his life, to keep his promise for the best pizza night of Sam’s life. That night Deck had finally learned the true meaning of food coma. He had to guess he had fallen asleep on the couch, but woke up to his heat hitting him hard in the middle of the night. Luke had simply pulled him closer, arm around his waist and nose buried into his nape. 

Deck felt like his consciousness kept coming and going. But, through it all, Luke was right there. With a cup of coffee for him in hand as soon as Deck managed to get himself downstairs. Much for Deck’s dismay, Luke kept his distance. The rational part of his brain told Deck that he was just being his good, old _decent_ self and waiting for Deck to come to him. No matter how crazy he must have been going.

The truth was that Deck’s scent had become unbearably sweet. Everything about it, on top of all of Deck, drew him in. It was the best case of tunnel vision Luke had ever experienced. But this wasn’t Russia. They were in perfect control over themselves and had actually chosen to do this. Luke wanted everything to go perfectly, okay? Sue him.

It wasn’t until Deck closed his eyes that Luke saw the crack in his control. There was a sudden hint of pepper underneath the vanilla that had become so familiar to him these past few days. Deck barely had the chance to set his mug down on the counter before he quickly closed the distance between them. And Luke was there when he did, arms open and mouth against his neck as soon as they were within arm’s reach of each other.

“How long have we got, princess?” Deck hummed at the feeling of Luke’s hands meeting his skin under his shirt. Knowing Luke had already agreed to be his partner through this heat had certainly helped keep his mind more connected to his body. At least until he gave up completely “You’re burning up”

“I’d say about thirty minutes, maybe less” There was no way Deck could estimate something like that accurately, but he knew enough of himself to know. Telling Luke about missing his heats after Russia had been a weird conversation. Though, after assuring the man everything would go back to normal as soon as things slowed down and they started spending time together, the idea had only served to add to Luke’s already huge ego “An hour, if I hold on to my sanity”

“No, no. I _want_ you to give in, princess. I want you to feel your heat as it takes control because you know I’m right here. Sam is safe and we are stocked up and good to go” It had been clear to Deck from the beginning that Luke thoroughly enjoyed providing for their bond, even though it didn’t exist yet. They had spent a long time simply working on building a routine with Sam and dedicating time to each other. But this was it. And Deck needed that reassurance now more than ever “I’m right here. And I’m going to mark you as mine, princess. Hopefully killing two birds with one stone and making sure my cub is safe and sound in you by the end of your heat”

The words made goosebumps appear on every inch of Deck’s skin. With whatever was left of his ability to think rationally, Deck remembered that bonded couples hardly ever got pregnant on the first try. The bond needed time, simple like that. But it wasn’t unheard of. Rare, but not unheard of. Sam was proof of that. But, when it came to Luke Hobbs, Deck should know better than to think the usual odds applied to him.

“You know it’s rare for that to happen during the claiming” Deck had no idea when he had closed his eyes, but he only noticed he had done so once he opened them. There was a smile on Luke’s face. The man loved a challenge, indeed. And it really wouldn’t surprise Deck if they were to join the select group of mated couples who got pregnant on the first try. 

“For you, princess, I’ll bend every rule” They stood there for a long while, with Luke’s hand climbing to Deck’s neck. The skin there was sensitive, igniting at the touch. Unlike their time together in Russia, his grip was steady and strong, demanding and protective. No more walking on eggshells. Deck wouldn’t be able to wiggle out of it, even if he wanted to. That was the most sensitive part of his body, when it came to his second gender, and Luke had perfect control over it.

Soon enough a growl erupted from deep within Luke’s chest. The Alpha in him picked up on the changes to Deck’s body long before he did so himself. Luke moved before Deck did, before he found the oxygen to speak and demand attention from the Alpha. Deck wrapped his legs around Luke’s waist, their chests pressed tightly together as Luke quickly took them upstairs. 

It was easy, giving up control. Maybe because of the way Luke’s hands touched him with such reverence. Or maybe because his mouth never strayed too far from where he planned on claiming Deck. It was their bed, their scents mixing. The constant pressure of Luke’s body against his, until there was nothing else that mattered but him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Find me on social media:
> 
> Twitter: @SofiaVolkerling // Tumblr: faded-green-of-bruises
> 
> XoXo


	12. Kept Him On the Ground

Luke saw stars. He had Deck’s body pressed against his, his broad back to Luke’s chest. Luke’s cock was tucked safe inside him, the two of them kneeling on the bed. Luke’s arms held Deck in place, the Omega relaxed and compliant. Deck moaned, letting Luke know how much he appreciated everything he did, every movement of his hips, his hands teasing his nipples and his mouth by his nape.

Claiming from behind was the easiest way to do it. Luke might have thought of some other position, one that would be far more comfortable when he was knotted inside Deck, with his teeth embedded into his neck. But when Deck’s heat had started, all thoughts left his mind. Deck had been on his hands and knees on the mattress, presenting for Luke, so  _ sorry _ if he threw all caution to the wind at the sight of him.

Luke timed it  _ just  _ right. He could smell Deck’s pleasure, as well as feel his orgam building. Deck’s slick was dripping down his balls, his cock was slippery. But his hands were steady. Deck’s hands reached for him, somewhat conscious of his own impending orgasm when Luke’s knot started to inflate. Deck caused them to lose their pace, but Luke didn’t mind it one bit. He was far more concerned with his teeth not being in Deck’s neck quite yet.

Deck groaned loudly, nails digging into Luke’s thighs as he came. His hips buckled as he shivered when Luke’s hand slid down to his throbbing cock, riding out the pleasure, his other hand held him in place. By the time Luke’s very first knot caught on the rim, with Deck gasping at the feeling, the Omega presented. Deck  _ actually _ presented. Head bobbed to the side, waiting. And Luke wasn’t the kind of man to leave him hanging.

Luke bit down hard enough to draw blood. Though Luke had never claimed anyone before, he knew what had to be done. His hand let go go of Deck’s oversensitive cock, circling his neck in a possessive grip, holding him in place. If Deck moved, it could be very painful for him. No matter the release of pheromones or the feeling of the bond forming, Luke would never risk Deck being in pain through this. The bite ripped another orgasm from Deck and Luke held him through the waves of it, feeling his delicious hole squeeze tight while he rode it out. There wasn’t much room left, but Luke sure was going to try.

Deck had no idea how long had passed before Luke released him. All he knew was that he was spread wide on his Alpha’s knot, with his neck deliciously tingling from the four punctures marks now adorning it. A scar he was more than happy to have. Luke’s hand touched his face, willing him to open his eyes, no matter how wondrously satiated he felt. Deck was happy to just doze off, already feeling the heat from Luke’s body loll him to sleep.

“Are you okay?” Luke panted into his ear and all Deck did was nod, a sleepy smile taking over his lips. Luke kissed his neck once more, making Deck groan softly. The sensation was unlike anything he had ever felt before. It took some maneuvering, but soon enough, Luke had changed their positions until they were more comfortable for some much deserved sleep. Luke’s arms closed around him and Deck gladly surrendered to his dream world.

* * *

There was something ridiculously  _ hot  _ about watching his Alpha handcuff someone. Maybe because said Alpha was Luke Hobbs. Maybe because Luke Hobbs was a hot piece of ass, wearing a three piece suit that had made Deck’s mouth water. Whatever the reason, Deck stood there, resting against the threshold of the mansion they had just broken into. Well, technically, they had been invited, but the details weren’t necessary. There had been a party involved and everything.

So, after dealing with his fair share of the minions they were told to get rid of until Nobody’s team arrived, Deck decided to enjoy the show until the others arrived. There was no way in hell he’d allow anyone else to see this. The seams of Luke’s trousers were positively ready to burst and his suit jacket was struggling against the muscles of his back. It was a feast only Deck’s eyes would ever get to enjoy, he’d make sure of it. He had already let that poor excuse of a woman dance with him. He wasn’t about to let anyone else in on this.

Deck’s arousal was what made Luke lift his gaze from the man groaning in pain at his feet. He had to admit, he had been a little anxious at the sight of Deck fighting. Though Luke had known it was unavoidable, it still made all of his instincts flare up. Being bonded had proven to keep him much calmer than he had ever been before and Deck had confessed to him that he finally felt like he could stop being a hundred percent aware of his surroundings, even at home. But still, this was pushing it. If Luke had ever had any doubts about retiring, they had been erased at the fear creeping up inside his throat.

But he could only smile at the scent of vanilla he had grown to know so well. Luke felt so incredibly proud to see his mate standing there, after taking down half of an European trafficking ring by himself without so much as a smudge of dirt, blood or any other bodily fluid on his clothes. It was the hottest shit Luke had ever seen. And the words that rushed out of his mouth didn’t exactly have his consent, but he’d stand by them either way.

“If I had a ring, I’d get down on my knee right now” Deck rolled his eyes, with a smile that lit up his entire face. He moved from his place by the threshold, ignoring the men on the floor as he stepped closer to his Alpha. Luke wiped his hands on his pants, greedily taking Deck’s waist in between them, glueing their bodies together “Don’t you roll your eyes at me, princess. You know what that does to me”

“Oh, I don’t know, Alpha. My mind is a little foggy. I have no idea why you hate it so much, since I’ve done it for so long” Deck spoke with nonchalance, arms wrapped around Luke’s shoulders looking all innocent, though there was a spark in his eyes Luke knew well. Though they hadn’t told anyone about them, Luke was sure Nobody’s men would have something to report back this time around. There was no way anyone with a nose could ignore the scent of arousal in the air “Why don’t you remind me, then?”

* * *

Luke had almost fallen asleep when he heard Deck mumble something into his chest. It took his brain a second to catch them. When he did, Luke smiled. Deck had taken residency on top of his chest for the night and Luke would be lying if he said he didn’t like it. The reassuring weight of his Omega kept him on the ground, relaxed and in perfect control of himself. That and the amazing sex they had just had.

“I don’t need a ring, twinkle toes” Deck had snuggled further into him and, with his free hand, Luke arranged the blankets to better cover his exposed body. Luke’s arm had been tightly secured around his back, fingers following along the curve of his spine until he had been too tired to keep it up “Having your bite is as binding as marriage in my eyes. So, hate to break it to you, Hulk, but you’re stuck with me”

Luke had chuckled, kissing the bridge of Deck’s nose when the man softly looked up at him. His lids had been heavy with sleep and Luke couldn’t believe his luck. All joking aside, he’d be more than happy to marry Deck’s grumpy british ass.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Find me on social media:
> 
> Twitter: @SofiaVolkerling // Tumblr: faded-green-of-bruises
> 
> XoXo


	13. Never Cease to Adore

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The last chapter was so small I decided to be extra nice and give you some more lol

Deck cursed _everything_. His third mated heat was coming up and he felt like utter shit. Granted, he still hadn’t felt any of the usual symptoms, so he knew he had no right to complain. But, of course, he had to catch some sort of bug. And, to top it all off, his Alpha had gone out on a mission. Alone. Though Deck appreciated getting to stay home and loved spending time with Sam, he should have been out there with Luke. 

Perhaps what really maddened him was the fact that it wasn’t this sudden illness that had caused him to stay behind. It was his nationality. Apparently, it was a ‘only americans allowed’ kind of party. Deck knew Luke could hold his own, on his _worst_ day. But it did nothing to appease him. Especially considering he had just vomited his lunch and had woken up to the worst case of night sweat he had ever faced. 

Sam had noticed he hadn’t eaten his breakfast, but he had played it cool. The last thing he needed was for her to call Luke and for the Alpha to be worried about him while out on a mission. Besides, Deck could handle the flu. He’d done so multiple times in his life. Had mastered the art of soup making when it came to Hattie being sick and well, Owen was Owen.

Except, the cramping in his stomach didn’t ease up. Deck had taken things easy all day and had settled down on the couch with a book and a cup of tea. No taste seemed to sit right on his tongue, though. His skin hated the feel of the blanket he had brought down from the bed with him. After what felt like hours without eating, Deck had decided to get started on making himself some chicken soup. He’d try eating some later, after figuring out what to make for Sam.

Deck decided to squeeze in a shower before running some errands. Bills that needed paying, mostly. Luke had left the money along with the mail by the nightstand and Deck decided to check he had everything in hand before popping into the shower. It wasn’t until he had been standing right next to their bed that Deck understood what was wrong with him.

He knew being starved from your mate’s touch was a myth. Science had disproved that theory a long time ago. _But_ , while _pregnant_ , that was a completely different story. Deck stopped dead in his tracks, a trembling hand settling over his flat stomach. He smiled, covering his mouth with his hand. The lack of symptoms, the tea tasting funny. It did make sense. 

As if on autopilot, Deck grabbed everything he needed and went about his day. Now that he had a working theory, his stomach seemed to have settled. Almost as if it had only acted up in order to open his eyes. Deck finished his errands in record time and sat in the car for a long while. He still had an hour before picking Sam up from school. _Plenty_ of time to go to the clinic and get tested, he told himself.

With quick thumbs, he Googled the nearest Omega clinic. Then checked if he had all of his documents. As he sat in the waiting room, filling out the paperwork, he couldn’t help but feel a pang of sadness in his chest. Luke should have been there for the experience. Then he told himself that if he weren’t, in fact, pregnant, he would have only gotten Luke’s hopes up. Two heats had already come and gone and zilch. If this turned out to be just a stomach bug, Deck would have never forgiven himself for putting Luke through it.

But he couldn’t help but laugh, after the nurse handed him the envelope. _Positive._ Four and a half weeks, give or take a few days. That put the conception of their little one right after their second mated heat. Oh, Luke would be ecstatic! How in the world do you tell your partner you’re pregnant?! Deck made his way to his car with a smile on his face, a smile that apparently wouldn’t go away. 

As soon as she entered the car, Sam eyed him funny. Deck had wanted to keep it a secret until he could tell Luke in person, but his Alpha was still over twenty-four hours away from heading back home. He had thought about telling Hattie, but she’d probably let it slip and tell mum before he could. She really did have a big mouth when it came to these things. Secret agent, his ass.

The second Sam set her backpack in the back seat, however, the words came tumbling right out of his mouth. And she screamed, a deafening scream that only added to his laughter. She grabbed the envelope, as if she’d understand any of the things written on it, but seemed satisfied to scream, once more, once she spotted the yellow marker highlighting the word _‘positive_ ’.

“Did you tell dad?! Oh, he’s gonna flip out!” Deck laughed, taking a deep breath before making his way out the school’s driveway. The cars behind him had been honking for a long while, but he hadn’t heard them until now. He felt compelled to flip them off, just for the hell of it but he didn’t think that would prove to be something a good parent would do. A parent. He felt butterflies in his stomach at the idea.

“No yet, pumpkin. I just got these results half an hour ago” Deck had decided to take Sam out for dinner. He didn’t feel like cooking and his stomach had been surprisingly well behaved for the past two hours. So, he counted his many blessings and settled for a good celebratory meal. They’d go out to celebrate with Luke some other time “Besides, he’s out on a mission. I don’t want anything to keep him distracted. Believe me, I can’t think of anything else. I doubt it’d be different for him”

“You’re right, you’re right. Oh, well! We have to think of a way to tell him!” 

* * *

Luke arrived home and immediately frowned. It was _way_ too quiet for a ten-year-old to be anywhere in the vicinity. The lights were turned down low on the first floor and Luke kind of expected to find the house empty. Though he could vividly remember letting Deck know he’d be arriving home a few hours ahead of schedule. But, after he hung his coat in the closet by the front door and rolled his suitcase until it rested against the couch, he noticed the kitchen light was on.

As soon as he entered it, he found Deck already smiling at him. His mate was resting against the counter, a cup of tea in hand. Deck set the mug back down, coming around to gladly walk into Luke’s hug. Luke’s nose buried itself into his mate’s neck, nuzzling the claim mark he had bitten anew before leaving. And Deck moaned, hands fisting the fabric of his sweater.

“Welcome home, big guy” Luke smiled down at his mate and Deck could see how tired Luke was. Deck’s hands slid down his chest and circled his waist, keeping them tied at the hip. Luke didn’t seem to mind. In fact, his hands did some roaming of their own, with their foreheads touching “No injuries, I hope”

“Apart from being hella tired, princess, none” Deck hummed his approval and gladly turned his neck so Luke could kiss him. The kiss was long and sweet, somehow lasting what felt like an eternity. Not that Deck was counting. He was about to rock Luke’s world, he thought the man was entitled to taking a moment now that he had arrived home “Is Sam already asleep? It’s not even seven p.m. yet”

“Don’t worry, Hulk. She’s at a friend’s house” Luke immediately thought of a number of questions he wanted to ask, but realized he trusted Deck. Besides, the look on his Omega’s face told him everything Luke needed to know. Somehow, after two very short months of being bonded, Luke had learned to read Deck. Far better than he had ever been able to do before. Deck hardly ever needed to vocalize what he wanted and Luke would already be there “She’ll be back by morning. Besides, you’ve been gone all week and I wanted to have you all to myself”

“You _already_ have me all to yourself. And Sam being home never stopped us before” Luke happily wrapped his arms around Deck and buried his nose into his neck once more. Deck’s scent wasn’t as sweet as Luke had expected it to be, however. That was weird. They were less than a week away from Deck’s next heat, so he was surprised to find his usual strong scent of vanilla to be quite tamed. But there was nothing wrong with his soap either. Or his clothes “You smell different”

“That’s why Sam’s not home, Alpha. I have something to tell you” Luke pulled away from their hug, only to find the most blinding smile on Deck’s face. His expression was a mixture of love, passion, amusement and mischief. A dangerous combo he’d grown to adore. And jeez, if Luke didn’t already love this man before “Or do you think you can figure it out on your own?”

Deck knew he’d never let Luke live this down. It took him almost an entire minute before realization hit him. And hit him _hard_. If at all possible, Deck’s smile only grew wider as Luke merely stared at him, frowning. There was a change in Luke’s scent as his eyes immediately took in Deck’s form. As if he had been expecting to find the bump that wasn’t there yet. A sly smile split Luke’s face and he laughed, pulling Deck in for another hug.

“Are you serious?” Luke’s hands cupped Deck’s face, laughter bubbling out of him. Luke’s hands slid down, circling his waist with wonder in his eyes. No matter how many ideas Sam had had for the reveal. Nothing could have ever compared to this. Just the two of them, in the kitchen. It was perfect in its simplicity “Please don’t joke about this with me”

“Oi, what do you take me for?” Deck couldn’t help but smile though. He felt the same. Exactly the same. They had done it. Against all odds, there they were. Deck knew there was so much more they needed to talk about. Bur for the time being, he was going to enjoy this. He was going to enjoy his Alpha pampering him and the absolute atmosphere of happiness they had created. They’d worry about telling people and building a nursery and only fuck knows what else later. They had plenty of time for that “Course I’m not joking. I’m not _that_ big of an arsehole”

“Does Sam know?” Deck hummed once Luke finally let go of his mouth. Truth be told, Luke’s kiss had the ability to leave his knees trembling. Today was no different, apparently. Deck moved on to grabbing Luke a beer from the fridge, having figured the man would need one after this little chat. Luke gladly accepted it, softly cheering Deck while he held his lukewarm tea. No more booze for him, that was for sure. But Deck didn’t mind it at all “Did you tell her?”

“I did. I had to tell someone” Deck smiled, thinking back to their dinner that night. Sam had been jumping up and down in her seat and Deck had all but smiled at their waitress. Truth be told, he felt like joining her. Though it wouldn’t be that socially acceptable of him to partake in that display of excitement “Besides, she saw right through me. And I love my sister, but I couldn’t trust she wouldn’t tell someone. When it comes to these things, she really can’t keep her mouth shut”

“Well, mamma is going to freak out, so we should get ready for the day they reunite” Deck couldn’t help but shake his head fondly at the memories he had of Samoa. Sure, what a mess that trip had been. But it had given him so much. Not to mention Luke getting to introduce Sam to his family “Speaking of which, how’s your mother? Still in prison, I take it”

“Last I heard, yes. Though she did ask for some explosives the last time I went to see her” Luke huffed, imagining exactly how that conversation must have gone. The members of the Shaw family had a problem with being locked up, apparently. Though he couldn’t see Deck’s mom trying to escape during a prison riot “Maybe once I tell her about the cub, she’ll actually behave for a change. Who knows, she might even make it out in time for the birth”

“Already thinking so far ahead, princess” Deck smiled when Luke sat in one of the bar stools and pulled him closer to stand in between his legs. Deck gladly rested his hands on Luke’s thighs, feeling the hard muscles flex underneath his palms. Luke’s nose traced his jaw, tongue softly licking the skin before leaving a kiss to it. 

“Well, excuse me for being sentimental, Agent Hobbs, but I’d like to have my family with me before I become a parent” Deck knew he could be completely honest with Luke, but still the words felt trapped inside his throat. There was nothing Deck wouldn’t do for his family. And Deck couldn’t help but wonder if Luke knew he was part of that family. A big part of it. And Sam. And their cub. But his mother, no matter how crazy she may be, was still his mother. And Hattie was everything to him. And Owen, well. Owen was still at the hospital, so there wasn’t much hope there. But still, if he could be there, Deck would welcome him “I’d like for everyone to be here, at some point. Lord knows all Sam’s been talking about since I told her about the cub is throwing me a baby shower, so it’s the perfect opportunity. _And_ , since you and I have agreed not to take any more missions, what else do you think I’ll be doing with my time if not creating the perfect home for this cub to grow up in?”

“I love you” The words just fell right out of Luke’s mouth. He had had his arms around his mate, and fuck if Deck’s words weren’t everything Luke had ever dreamed of hearing. Deck’s eyes went wide, though it didn’t seem to be due to shock. Surely, he must have known what Luke felt for him. He wouldn’t have pined for the man for months, desiring a family with him if he didn’t feel something. Love had followed. It had been the simplest thing Luke had ever done “Jeez, princess. I know exactly how you feel. This is our home and of course I want this to be perfect for our cub. And if your mom can’t be here in time, we’ll make sure to visit her before you deliver. Sam is going to love London. And… Christ, I…”

“I love you too” The words came out in a whisper, but Luke heard them. Deck’s eyes were nowhere near his and Luke knew. Luke knew how hard it was for him to say those words and he doubted Deck would ever know how much him saying them meant to him. Luke smiled, lifting Deck’s chin until the Omega looked at him. There was a tinge of pink to his cheeks and Luke would never cease to adore that color on him “Hey, don’t look at me like that. I’m never saying those words again”

“Just needed to hear them once, princess”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Find me on social media:
> 
> Twitter: @SofiaVolkerling // Tumblr: faded-green-of-bruises
> 
> XoXo


	14. Anywhere Else in the World

Samantha Hobbs knew she was one lucky girl. She found herself looking at the mess the living room of her house was and couldn’t help but smile. To one side, all of her uncles were arguing about a new project for the shop, basking in the Californian heat that reminded them of home. Inside, by the kitchen, Sam saw her dad, with his arm around Deck. And Deck was huge! Like, _really_ huge. Like he had swallowed a watermelon. Dad had told her not to say to him, but it was true.

She laughed at baby Brian, running around with some of her cousins. She was the oldest of the kids, but she still loved having them around. They were family. How she had gotten to be so lucky, she didn’t understand. One day, she had only had her father. Now, she had all of these amazing people. But Deck was her favorite. He was like, her best friend. She loved him very much.

“Hey, pumpkin. How is it going?” Deck stood next to her, peaking over her shoulder but she immediately hid the cards she was holding. Deck groaned and she laughed, head thrown back. Dad had warned her about letting Deck anywhere near them and he had been right to do so. Dad had, in fact, gotten everything right. Her grandma had pulled Deck into a huge hug, whispering something to him that had made him blush furiously.

Her uncles had been nice as well, though Sam had to remind herself they had already met before. The best part about Deck being pregnant with her baby brother or sister, was the fact that her father had taken to being home. For good, this time. She had been relieved when he had sat her down to explain it to her that he would be retiring for real this time. But Deck was somewhat sad too. He was very excited about the whole family being together, but she knew there was something missing.

If only Deck knew.

Sam kept herself from laughing, deciding to entertain Deck while her father went and got his surprise ready. They had decided to have a ballot for the baby shower. A game where everyone bet five dollars on the sex of the baby. What exactly would be done with that money, Sam didn’t know. But she didn’t care. Because Deck had asked her to be the official referee of their little game and she had been counting the votes for the past ten minutes. She even double checked, just to make sure.

“Girl” Sam whispered, setting the cards aside, along with her little note with how much money had been raised. Deck’s head had snapped down to look at her, a smile soon showing on his face. Of course, this game had nothing to do with the actual sex of the cub, but Deck _had_ bet with Luke that they were having a boy, while the Alpha had put his money on a girl. But they had agreed to wait until the birth to find out “Girl’s winning”

“Well, though I hate to see your father win...” Sam laughed, knowing how much her father would gloat about this. Deck’s hand brushed her curls aside, a smile on his face. He huffed a little, grabbing Sam’s hand and placing it on his belly. She smiled up at him, feeling the baby kicking “If our little girl turns out anything like her big sister, you won’t hear me complaining”

* * *

“Where in the world is your father?” Deck spoke more to himself than to Sam, who seemed to only find it in herself to laugh. He was happy to know she was happy. His biggest fear about moving in with the Hobbs’ was that somehow they wouldn’t get along. Deck had never been more relieved in his life than the day he found he had been wrong to be afraid.

“I’m right here, princess” Deck didn’t turn around, however. He had been too busy organizing the fridge, given how much beer Luke’s brothers had already gone through. Oh, Deck remembered alcohol. Good times. He huffed, feeling Luke’s hands circle his waist and caress the curve of his belly “Have I ever told you how beautiful you look? You’re always hot, but nothing compares to this”

“Yeah, only a couple hundred times, twinkle toes” Deck moved his neck so Luke could nuzzle along the side of it, closing his eyes and enjoying how their baby always relaxed under his Alpha’s touch. Luke chuckled, kissing his neck firmly before moving away. The first few weeks after finding out about the cub, Luke had had a hard time keeping his hands to himself. Now that Deck was six months along, there was nothing that would keep Luke from touching him whenever he could “Will you still think that when I get even bigger? Because you and I both know this pup isn’t done growing yet”

“Oh, believe me, this belly does things to me. You always do it for me. This is just an added bonus” Deck closed his eyes for a brief second, smelling the soft spike in Luke’s warm scent. It made his own breath hitch. Luke kissed his neck once more, right on top of his claim mark. It made Deck’s knees buckle. Luke merely chuckled, keeping Deck upright in his arms “I know you hate surprises, princess, but I have one for you. In the living room”

“Luke, we agreed you wouldn’t get me anything” Deck felt like they had had that conversation before and frowned to think Luke had gone and done so anyway. Deck didn’t like surprises. He had spent his whole life running away from them. And today was _not_ the day. Today was about their cub, not him “Alpha, why would you…”

“Trust me, you’re gonna be too busy in awe to bitch at me about getting you a present” Deck only arched his brows, mildly annoyed. He’d probably be far more annoyed if this weren’t his mate and father of his cub. Deck knew their bond stopped him from being that angry, but he still felt like Luke would understand. They didn’t do surprises. No surprise date nights, no surprise trips. Everything was talked through in detail. Deck wasn’t ready to give up this lifestyle “I know you hate cheesy, but here it goes, baby. If you would _only_ walk into the room. You can thank me later”

“You better sit down and wait, wanker” Deck sighed, taking the first few steps down the hall. He hated leaving his guests unattended, but figured he could always guilt Luke into dealing with things. Being pregnant sure had given him that leverage. Well, better rip off the band-aid, right? But he had taken all of three steps down the hall before his feet became stuck. His nostrils flared and he had never been happier to have Luke standing right behind him “You didn’t”

“Oh, I did, princess” Luke chuckled, softly urging Deck to keep moving. He had been keeping this secret for days now. Secret phone calls and emails in order to make this happen and he would be damned if he allowed Deck to ruin this for himself. And for his mother and sister, too “I had to pull some strings and call in a couple of favors, but I made it happen. Got the last five months cut from her sentence. But only if she became the model inmate. Which she did, for you. Hattie was in on it too. Now, go. You wanted them here. I got them here”

“Deckard Shaw, I can’t believe you were planning on keeping this fine specimen of an Alpha all to yourself!” Deck’s cheeks were burning, of that much he was sure. Luke huffed behind him, but didn’t say anything. Magdalene Shaw was standing in their living room, with Hattie by her side. Hattie had that mischievous Shaw smile on her face and she winked at Luke. The two little _fuckers_! “He was so nice, getting me out of the box. Now, come here. I want to feel my grandson”

“We don’t know the sex yet, mum” Deck gladly went into his mother’s arms. For some reason, Deck had been craving his mother’s touch more these days. He had been so devastated to hear she wouldn’t be out for the birth. And Hattie hadn’t made any promises, claiming she’d probably be away in the field. It had crushed him. Luke had done his best to fill that hole, but it hadn’t truly been enough. Until now, of course “I’m sorry I didn’t get to introduce Luke as my Alpha in person. Though I know you know him, mum. So don’t even get me started”

Luke smiled at how Deck’s accent grew thicker in his mother’s presence. Hattie was the spitting image of the woman, he had learned. How he hadn’t seen the Shaw resemblance faster, he really didn’t know. He had never known Deck’s father, or even seen a picture of him, but Deck had a lot of his mother as well. Hattie pulled both her mother and brother into a hug and Luke turned to make his way out of the room, when Deck’s voice made him stop.

“Don’t even try, big guy. You’re not off the hook” Deck’s eyes could have been described as murderous, but Luke knew better. He didn’t dare laugh, though. His Omega was quickly growing to be heavily pregnant and the last thing Luke needed was for Deck to get hurt trying to kick him. He was still incredibly flexible and agile, but let’s not push it “I can’t believe you lied to me. You too, Hats. I expected this from mum, sure. But not you two”

“You said you wanted the family to be complete. And I’m nothing if not here to indulge your every desire, love” Deck’s eyes didn’t leave his. Though his cheeks blushed at his mother swooning over his Alpha, he felt the desire curse through him. Luke had been quite gentle with him throughout the pregnancy and Deck knew soon enough all sexual activities would cease completely. Deck planned on making the most of it while he could. And Luke _knew_ , if his sly smile was anything to go by “Come on, let’s introduce everyone. Hats, Sam is going to adore you”

Deck followed, his mum’s arm linked with his. He had no desire to be anywhere else in the world.

* * *

Deck’s water broke at home, thank fuck. Problem was, it was in the middle of the night. Of course this baby couldn’t make a normal entrance. They were a Shaw, after all. And Deck groaned at the first contraction. He had _just_ found a comfortable enough position for his belly and he had been asleep for all of _three_ minutes when he felt something wet spread across the sheets. Deck was thankful, however, that he didn’t even have to move for Luke to wake up, no matter how much of a heavy sleeper he was. He had probably smelled the pain Deck was in, though he knew it would only get worse from here.

“Hey, hey. What’s going on?” Luke had his hand on his belly, feeling for the baby. Their cub had grown quiet these past few days and the doctor had assured them it meant they would be parents very soon. Deck was eight months and a week in. It was showtime, that was for sure. Deck’s hand reached for Luke’s and the Alpha brought it to his mouth, kissing his pulse point “Hey, talk to me. I’m right here”

“Me water broke” Deck spoke through gritted teeth, hearing Luke gasp as he let Deck squeeze his hand through the pain. It was over very quickly. Luke pushed the blanket and sheets away, getting up in one swift movement. He walked around the bed, offering Deck all the help he could need getting to a sitting position “Not a drill, big guy. Probably ruined the mattress, though”

“It’s okay, don’t worry about that now. We’ve got everything ready to go” Deck assured him he was fine and Luke all but raced into their shared closet, bringing back the bag they had packed for the cub and Deck, along with the changes of clothes they had separated for themselves. They were special agents, they had this shit handled “Let’s just get you dressed and I’ll wake Hattie up”

“Go, do it. I can dress myself” Luke growled at the words and Deck’s eyebrows shot up, hands stilling. He chuckled though, in spite of how his body responded to his Alpha anyway. They knew it would only be harder for Luke to be away from him the closer Deck got to full term, but this was ridiculous and they both knew it. What was walking down to the end of the hall? Luke sighed, kissing Deck’s mouth before making his way out of their room.

Deck dressed himself slowly, just like he did everything these days. Usually Luke helped him with everything, if not straight up doing it for him. Like tying his shoes or making sure the house was as organized as possible with a ten year old girl. They had transformed Luke’s old office into a nursery, so they could keep the guest bedroom, where Hattie was staying. She had been kind enough to come stay with them ever since Deck’s due date started to rapidly approach, to keep an eye on Sam and the house while they were at the hospital.

Luke came back and they made their way downstairs. It was a slow task, given how Deck had another contraction. Eight minutes in total between them. They wouldn’t have much time if things kept progressing that fast. His doctor had assured Deck he wouldn’t be able to deliver naturally, given his age and how much his body had suffered due to his previous injuries. But this baby seemed about as ready to meet the world as a baby could get. Which meant they had to get going.

Sam had woken up and Luke had kissed her quickly, telling her to be good to Hattie. Deck had smiled at how she had squared her shoulders, almost as if her father had given her the biggest responsibility ever. Oh, he loved that girl. Deck kept his hand on Luke’s thigh the entire ride to the hospital, while the man got them all the way over. Finally, Luke had switched the truck for a more family friendly vehicle, after some convincing on Deck’s part. It was almost four thirty in the morning and Los Angeles was still under that weird pre five in the morning kind of spell. 

It helped them make record time to the hospital and soon enough Deck was being wheeled into the delivery wing. Luke didn’t leave his side for a second. Deck had joked that he wouldn’t run off after he popped and, though Luke had laughed, Deck knew he had hit a nerve. Sam’s mother had walked away. Deck would _never_ be that stupid. He had, instead, kissed Luke senseless and had promised they would walk out of the hospital together.

And he planned on keeping that promise. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Find me on social media:
> 
> Twitter: @SofiaVolkerling // Tumblr: faded-green-of-bruises
> 
> XoXo


	15. You Win, Baby

Deck stood on the pool deck, beer in hand as he enjoyed the sunlight shining on his face. He had his head thrown back, eyes closed as he heard his son giggling. That had to be the best sound Deck had ever heard before. Sam had been a fantastic big sister, attentive and caring as she played with her baby brother. Henry had been the best baby, since day one and now, a week away from completing three, he had been running up and down the backyard, laughing at the top of his lungs.

And Deck’s smile only grew larger when he felt large, warm hands circle his waist. Luke’s mouth touched his neck, his large body enveloping all of Deck. Deck’s stomach had been flat for three years now, but Luke hadn’t let go of the habit of touching him like this. He let Luke hold all of his weight, and the man didn’t seem to even notice the difference. They had just celebrated Luke’s forty-fourth birthday and Deck himself was rapidly approaching forty-nine. 

“You want another beer? Or have you had enough, lightweight?” Deck rolled his eyes, taking his empty bottle and flipping it in his hand as he turned around to face his Alpha. If Deck decided to break that bottle and make a weapon out of it, Luke wouldn’t have half a second to do a thing about it. But Deck didn’t feel like fighting. In fact, he could think of a couple different things he’d rather have his Alpha do to him.

“You sure you wanna go there, wank stain?” Luke had adjusted to retired life much faster than Deck had. Maybe it was because, while in the military, the kind of missions Deck was sent to were horrific in comparison to what Luke had seen in his time. There were certain habits one doesn’t just let go of. Such as carrying a weapon at all times. Deck had two on him at the moment, two knives Luke still had no knowledge of “You still owe me that one-on-one fist fight, remember? You wanna do this in front of our kids?”

Sam was his. Deck refused to believe otherwise. She was his daughter, just as much as she was Luke’s. Deck may not have given birth to her, but Sam was a part of him either way. These past years together had been the best of Deck’s life, largely thanks to his relationship with her. With laughing at the moms who no longer hit on Luke because the news of Deck being his Omega had run free like wildfire, or being the best host for her sleepovers Sam could have asked for. Or comforting her when she got hurt. Or simply holding her hand while her dad explained to her the changes she was going through. Sam had presented last winter and Deck had been grateful to have been there for her.

“The truth is, princess, that you already won” Deck arched his eyebrows at Luke’s blindingly happy smile. Deck flipped the bottle twice more and set it down by the window sill. Luke’s arms circled his waist, keeping them close together even though Deck had crossed his arms. He was still skeptical of that answer and was somewhat expecting Luke to Judo-flip him somehow “I’m yours, Deck. I don’t think I could ever bring myself to fight you, even though I  _ know  _ you can handle it. I just don’t think I can. You have me on the palm of your hand, Deckard Shaw. So, I give up. You win, baby”

Deck liked that answer.  He uncrossed his arms and circled Luke’s shoulders, pulling him down and into a kiss. Their bond would never allow them to truly try and hurt each other. If anything, even if they didn’t feel love for each other, the bond would ensure nothing happened. But he understood. There was no point in trying to find out who would remain standing after such a fight. They were _far_ better fighting together than against one another. 

Deck smiled into Luke’s mouth at the way the Alpha pressed his leg in between Deck’s. Luke’s hands were demanding, pushing his shirt up and moaning at the feelings of finally touching his skin. Being fully aware their kids were only a few yards away, Deck kept his voice down. He let Luke explore his mouth all he wanted, but refused to put on a show for their neighbors. When they finally pulled away, Luke’s eyes were darker, pupils blown wide. Deck could only smile, resting his forehead against Luke’s chest. Luke was insatiable, much like himself. One of the many things Deck loved about him.

“You know, my doctor said I will probably only have one or two more heats before they stop completely. Maybe three, if we're lucky” Luke hummed, mesmerized at the way the sunlight changed everything about Deck. Before moving to California, his skin had been milky white. And it had done it for Luke. But now Deck was all tanned and delicious and Luke couldn’t  _ wait  _ to get his mouth on him again. Everywhere. And he planned on enjoying every single one of those heats “Think you can fuck another baby into me before that happens, big guy?”

Luke growled, his hands stilling in their path as Deck laughed, gladly letting his Alpha pull him closer.

“We can sure as  _ hell _ try, princess”

The End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Find me on social media:
> 
> Twitter: @SofiaVolkerling // Tumblr: faded-green-of-bruises
> 
> XoXo


End file.
